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卷四百四十七 列傳第二百〇六 忠義二 霍安國 李涓 李邈劉翊 徐揆 陳遘 趙不試 趙令峸 唐重郭忠孝 程迪 徐徽言 向子韶 楊邦乂

Volume 447 Biographies 206: Loyalty and Righteousness 2: Huo Anguo; Li Juan; Li Miao; Liu Yi; Xu Kui; Chen Gou; Zhao Bushi; Zhao Lingcheng; Tang Zhong; Guo Zhongxiao; Cheng Di; Xu Huiyan; Xiang Zishao; Yang Bangyi

Chapter 447 of 宋史 · History of Song
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Chapter 447
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1
Huo Anguo, Li Juan, Li Miao, Liu Yi, Xu Kui, Chen Gou, Zhao Bushi, Zhao Lingcheng, Tang Chong, Guo Zhongxiao, Cheng Di, Xu Huiyan, Xiang Zishao, and Yang Bangyi.
2
使 殿 使 使 殿
Huo Anguo. It is not known where he was from. When Yanshan was recovered, he served as transport judge with the rank of Direct Academician of the Secret Pavilion. At the end of Xuanhe, he was prefect of Huaizhou. In the first year of Jingkang, Lu Yundi came to Huai on an embassy, submitted a memorial on Anguo’s achievements in government, and Anguo was additionally made Direct Academician of the Longtu Pavilion. Within the year he was advanced to Compiler of the Youwen and Jiying Halls and transferred to be prefect of Longde Prefecture, but before he left he was kept in place. When Jin cavalry arrived again, the city was besieged. Anguo defended it with all his strength, and troops from Ding and Li also arrived and joined him in the defense. He was appointed Waiting Academician of the Huiyou Pavilion, but in the intercalary eleventh month the city finally fell. The officer Wang Mei threw himself into the moat and died. Nianhan had Anguo and those below him brought out and divided into four lines, and had a barbarian official ask who refused to surrender. Anguo said, “The defending minister Anguo.” When the others were questioned, Lin Yuan, acting prefectural controller and Direct Academician of the Huiyou Pavilion; Zhang Pengnian, military controller and Defense Commissioner of Jizhou; garrison supervisors Zhao Shizhu, Zhang Chen, and Yu Qian; the Ding and Li generals Shen Dun and Zhang Xingzhong; and five squad commanders all answered in the same words, “Yuan and the others are one body with the prefect; none of us will surrender.” The chieftain ordered them led to the northeastern quarter and told them to bow toward his state and surrender. None yielded, so he had them stripped and bound with their faces exposed, killed thirteen men, and released the rest. No living member of Anguo’s household remained. The next year, he was posthumously granted the title Academician of the Yankang Hall.
3
殿 ''
Li Juan, styled Haoran, was a great-grandson of Zunxu, Commandant of the Imperial Son-in-Law's Household. Through yin privilege he entered service as a palace attendant; after passing a Secretariat examination he transferred to the civil register, rose to Gentleman for Unimpeded Communication, and was appointed magistrate of Chongyang County in Ezhou. In the first year of the Jingkang reign, when the capital was besieged, urgent orders went out summoning troops from every quarter. Seven counties in the Ezhou circuit were to furnish twenty-nine hundred men, yet none had mustered; Juan alone, with six hundred troops he had raised, volunteered to march at once. Some urged him: "Why not wait until the other counties are ready?" Juan replied: "Matters are desperate. Someone must carry proof of loyalty to the emperor and rally the southeast." Most of his recruits were townsfolk untrained for war; Juan spent his own funds on beef and wine to hearten and reward them. He told them: "I know this may avail little, but our family has enjoyed the state's favor for generations; the only honorable course is to die standing. Do you know the law? 'He who loses his commander must die.' A single death in the scales—to die for the realm and leave one's name is the immortal deed of a true man." The men all wept. That same day he led them eastward; north of the Huai, the contingents from Puxian and Jiayu finally arrived, and they marched on together. At Cai a heavy snow fell; the townspeople suddenly panicked and fled, crying: "The enemy has arrived!" Juan immediately formed battle lines to meet them. Soon enemy scouts appeared in force. Juan charged first at the enemy van; his foot soldiers advanced under covered shields, killed many horsemen, and drove the enemy back. Pressing the pursuit northward for more than ten li, he met the main enemy force; arrows fell thick as quills, and the troops from the two counties fled at once. Badly wounded, he fought on in a welter of blood, ordering his men to carry him forward, and died on the field at fifty-three. Six or seven out of ten of his soldiers perished. A superior who envied Juan forced a survivor to claim he had fled. The following year, after the Jin withdrew, the people of Cai brought back his body. The court honored his loyalty, posthumously promoting him to Gentleman for Court Audience and granting office to his three sons.
4
調
Li Miao, styled Yansi, came from Qingjiang in Linjiang Circuit. He was descended from Li Shizhi, a Tang imperial clansman who served as chancellor. From youth he showed talent and strategic sense—sharp, resolute, and swift in judgment, seizing affairs the moment they arose. Through his father's office he became a Temple Acolyte. He first served as judicial officer of Anzhou and as supervisor of Runzhou's wine monopoly. Recommended for capital service, he oversaw the metropolitan bamboo-and-timber office, was promoted to commissioner for Huanqing circuit grain supplies, and served as vice prefect of Hejian.
5
使使 使 使
After offending Cai Jing and Tong Guan he was shifted to military rank; from Gentleman for Courteous Deportment he became Vice Commissioner of the Imperial Manors, governed Xin'an Army and then Bazhou, and served as deputy envoy to the Liao New Year's court. On his return Tong Guan planned a joint Jurchen attack on the Khitan; he summoned Miao privately, tried to win him over, and wanted him in his camp. Miao said the Khitan had not yet abandoned their ruler; Guan, fearing dissent, memorialized that Miao resume his post without awaiting audience. Miao wrote: "The Khitan cannot be destroyed; if policy errs, execute me to satisfy the frontier commanders." Transport commissioner Shen Jizhong compiled fifty-three charges; investigation found nothing, and Miao was dismissed for building the Divine Empyrean Palace contrary to edict.
6
西 西 涿
Later he supervised the capital dye works and was promoted Grand Commissioner for the Bian River embankments west of the capital. When bandits rose in eastern Zhe he served in the Jiang-Huai and Two-Zhe Pacification Office, then as prefect of Yanzhou, and returned when his term ended. Guan wanted western troops for Yan; Miao warned: "Fang La was a petty rebel, yet one call laid waste to seven prefectures and forty-odd counties—it took several circuits to crush him. Heaven may be warning you; why rush troops north?" He secretly urged Guan to back the Khitan against the Jurchen; Guan would not listen, and Miao sought retirement. After Guan recovered Yanshan he recommended Miao for Zhuozhou and Yizhou; Miao refused both posts. He sighed: "The realm's ruin begins here!"
7
宿 退 使 使 殿使
When the Jurchen struck the capital, an edict summoned him; Miao roused himself and set out once more. He arrived as Yao Pingzhong's defeat shook the capital; the emperor delayed audience and asked how to repel the enemy. Miao said: "Victory and defeat are the soldier's lot; Your Majesty need not despair—never has success come when war and peace waver together." He added: "Zhong Shidao is a seasoned commander both enemies respect. The court clung to peace while handing every circuit's troops to Shidao, letting the enemy dictate movement. In camp the commander need not obey every order; let him attack when he sees chance—victory blesses the altars; and even defeat would show the enemy our generals answer to the realm." The emperor approved, but Geng Nanzhong led the peace faction; passed over, Miao was offered Drafting Attendant and capital transport commissioner and declined.
8
西使 西使 西 使 使 使
With the Jurchen still at Maotuo Ridge, Miao was appointed defender of the capital's western wall. Miao said: "Yao Pingzhong lost, yet the enemy dared not remain—they fear us. Not to fight again under Zhong Shidao was already to miss the chance; yet we could still pursue and strike them mid-river—a lesson for generations." Deliberation was blocked again. He thrice asked to retire; the court refused. He became director of cavalry affairs and acting deputy director of the Bureau of Military Affairs, then pacification commissioner of Hebei West Circuit. He was charged with the Shanxi ponds, garrison farms, and archer militia. Miao argued the ponds were unworkable; stripped of the pacification post, he was demoted to militia commissioner while retaining the arrangements office. He argued relentlessly and lost his observer rank; by then the Jin were nearing the frontier. He was restored to his former rank and defended Zhending. Two days later he was demoted, appointed observer of Qingzhou, and still governed the prefecture.
9
滿滿 使
On taking office he had fewer than two thousand troops and less than two million in cash; knowing he could not hold alone, he called on the people to fund a last stand. Trusting Miao, within days they raised 130,000 strings of cash and 110,000 piculs of grain and several thousand militia. The new levies lacked spirit; when the Jin came Miao begged Liu Ni for aid and sent secret dispatches—none answered. Besieged, they fought and held for forty days. When the city fell he fought in the alleys; barred from a well by his attendants, he could not drown himself. Wolibu demanded obeisance; Miao refused; they burned his beard, brows, and thighs—he did not flinch—and held him in Yanjing.
10
使
The Jurchen asked: "You raised militia, called us bandits, and attacked us—why?" Miao said: "You broke faith and seize gold, silk, and daughters wherever you march—why should I not call you enemies?" They could not break him. Later they offered him Cangzhou; he laughed and was silent. They lectured him: "Power shifts; China merely met misfortune. Return the two emperors and the Two He, take tribute like the Khitan did—can you count on strength forever?" They ordered him to wear Jurchen dress; furious, he cursed them; they beat his mouth, and he spat blood in their faces. The next day he tonsured himself as a monk; enraged, they executed him. At death his face did not change; he bowed south twice, sat upright to the blade, and men of Yan wept. Gaozong posthumously made him military commissioner of Zhaohua with the posthumous name Loyal and Stalwart.
11
使 使 宿
Liu Yi—in Jingkang's first year became chief controller of the Zhending circuit as defender of Jizhou. The Jin failed against Guangxin and Baozhou, bypassed Zhongshan, and struck Zhending. Yi led the garrison in ceaseless fighting on the walls. The Jin first assaulted the north wall; Yi held them; they feigned an attack on the east, and Li Miao ordered Yi to shift there; after two nights they secretly moved engines north again; soldiers scaled the wall and the city fell. Miao was taken; Yi still fought in the alleys; as men fled he told his brother: "I am a great general—I will not die at bandits' hands!" He charged the encirclement; every gate was held; at the Sun family pavilion he hanged himself with his sash.
12
使使 使
Xu Kui was from Quzhou. He studied at the capital and entered the Imperial College. In Jingkang's first year he topped the Kaifeng metropolitan examination; before the palace exam calamity struck. When Qinzong went to the Jin camp and did not return, Kui led students to the Southern Fragrance Gate and petitioned the two Jin commanders to send the emperor home. The gist of it said: "Formerly, when King Zhuang of Chu entered Chen and wanted to make it a county, Shen Shushi remonstrated, and he restored it as a fief. Later ages praised the minister's counsel and the king's heed—men still honor their example after a thousand years. Our court broke faith with a great power and invited war—that is a commander's office; the capital nearly fell yet stood—that is your merit; you took the city without slaughter and markets stayed open—the people lived—that is your mercy; even King Zhuang's mercy in sparing Chen cannot match this. Our emperor humbled himself at your gates; he lingers in the wild while the realm strains toward the dust of his carriage. Rumor says gold and silver alone detain him; I cannot believe it. The treasury is empty; every trinket of the people has gone to the state. Merchants no longer come to the capital—how can scraps satisfy your demands? To save the realm yet hold the emperor for gold— is like honoring sons while shaming their fathers—you would not do this. Extend mercy, preserve kindness from beginning to end, return our ruler and father, withdraw the army in order, and grant time for us to seek the goods from the four quarters; then the merit of Chu restoring Chen would not be worth mentioning." The two commanders read the letter, had Kui brought to camp on horseback for questioning; he answered fiercely and was killed. In Jianyan's second year the court honored his martyrdom, posthumously promoting him to Instructor in the Edict and granting office to his kin.
13
西
Chen Gou, styled Hengbo, came of a family that had moved from Jiangning to Yongzhou. He passed the jinshi examination. As magistrate of Xin County he governed well; Jiang Zhiqi, Feng Jing, and Xu Jiang of Wei prefecture all recommended him. Serving Yongqiu, he was slated for the censorate when his father Youfu died. After mourning he became transport judge of Guangxi. Cai Jing opened tribal lands and founded three prefectures; Gou warned: "The tribes prize peace—provoke them and trouble follows." Jing resented him and removed him on a pretext.
14
使西 使 使 殿使 使使 使
He soon governed Shangzhou and Xingyuan and entered the capital as a Ministry of Revenue secretary. Under Zhang Shangying he served as left-department vice director. He was soon made drafting attendant; then Shangying fell from power. Cai Yu blocked the appointment; Gou feared him and sought a provincial post. As Direct Secretariat Attendant he became Hebei transport commissioner, gained the Dragon Diagram title, and was transferred to Shaanxi. Recalled, then sent again to Hebei and Huainan when Cai Jing returned. The emperor was going to replace the transport commissioner and ordered the selection of planning officials from the various routes with distinguished backgrounds. The ministers named Gou, but Cai Jing said: "His office is too low; please choose someone else." The emperor said: "Promote him to Drafting Attendant of the Hall of Assembled Eminence and send him." Jing held his tongue. He became deputy commissioner, then commissioner. With grain transport urgent and canals choked, he opened the Lücheng and Chen'gong ponds to the channel. The route had barely opened when Zhu Mian's tribute convoys blocked official traffic. Gou arrested the offenders and memorialized against himself. The emperor branded Mian's men and promoted Gou to Awaiting Drafting Attendant of the Huixian Pavilion.
15
In Xuanhe's second winter Fang La rebelled; Gou was put in charge. Gou reported: "La began with under a thousand at Qingxi; coerced followers now exceed ten thousand; others rally in Suzhou and Gui'an. Southeastern forces are weak and untrained—they cannot destroy the rebels alone. Send capital troops and Ding-Li spearmen at forced march lest the revolt spread. Thus the uprising may be contained." The emperor adopted his plan.
16
使仿
He was made Direct Dragon Diagram Academician, commissioner over seven circuits, based at Hangzhou. With expenses soaring, he devised "commissioner funds" by measuring public and private intake and increasing surcharges. Later Weng Yanguo copied the scheme as "aggregate funds." Hence the lasting name "commissioner-aggregate funds," from these two men.
17
He wrote: "The rebels ravage counties, hunting officials and slaughtering without mercy. They mutilate bodies, boil victims in oil, shoot them with heavy arrows—cruelty without end. Greedy officials who extort by law have no limit. Years of injustice bred this rage—how tragic. Unless this is checked, rebellion will rise again. He asked to investigate corrupt officials still at their old ways and punish them severely." The throne agreed.
18
Promoted again, his measures came preceded by imperial brush orders. He impeached Wang Zhong'ai of Yue for extorting gold tea sets and cheating grain tickets; Zhong'ai was dismissed. After the rebellion Hangzhou's waterways were choked and floods plagued the people. Earlier prefects had begged the court for dredging; cost always stopped them. In winter he summoned gate guards from Zhen, Yang, Run, and Chu to the prefectural seat. Those soldiers had often starved when gates closed for winter. Two thousand came gladly; in under two months the river was cleared to Hangzhou's benefit.
19
使殿 殿祿 祿
He became Hebei chief transport commissioner, Yankang academician, and governed Zhongshan, Zhending, and Hejian. Under Qinzong he rose to Zizheng academician and Grandee of Splendid Happiness. He returned to Zhending, then moved to Zhongshan. When the Jin returned, Gou broke through the siege into the city and held firm. The Prince of Kang was made grand marshal; Gou was made army-and-horse marshal. Besieged half a year, no relief came. When the capital fell, the Two He were ceded for peace. His brother Shi arrived with the edict; Gou shouted from the wall: "The ruler is shamed—ministers must die. We live by honor—how could we sell the realm and become prisoners?" Shi wept: "Brother, fight on—forget me."
20
使
Gou ordered the chief controller to rally every soldier; the man refused and Gou beheaded him. He then sent infantry commander Sha Zhen. Zhen, famed for courage, refused; Gou insisted. Angry and afraid, Zhen hid a blade and entered the hall. Concubine Dingnu scolded his intrusion; he killed her, then Gou in the hall, his son Xi, and seventeen household members. Eldest son Ju, serving in Huainan, survived. Zhen fled; soldiers cried: "The enemy is at the gates—how dare you kill our leader?" They seized and tore him limb from limb. Leaderless, the city opened the gates and surrendered. The Jin, seeing his body, said: "A loyal minister of the Song." They buried him at the Iron Pillar Temple. Early in Jianyan he was posthumously made Special Grandee.
21
Gou was filial, friendly, generous, and long-tempered. For twenty years as prefect he burned incense whenever he toured a county, praying not to meet corrupt officials. He recommended Wang Anzhong, Lü Yihao, Zhang Kai, Xie Kejia, and He Zhu—all later reached high office; men called him a judge of talent.
22
祿
Shi rose from Kaifeng vice magistrate to Chamberlain for Imperial Sacrifices. In this war the Jin seized him and took him north. He died in Yunzhong ten years later.
23
Zhao Bushi.
24
Zhao Bushi was a sixth-generation descendant of Emperor Taizong. Late in Xuanhe he was vice prefect of Xiangzhou, then governed it and directed Zhending pacification. In Jianyan's first year he became prefect of Xiangzhou. After Wang Boyan left, the Jin took his son Si hostage to demand territory; at Xiang, Bushi refused. The next year the Jin invaded in force. Long besieged, morale failed; Bushi told them: "Food is scarce and no aid comes. I am imperial kin and will not surrender—what shall we do?" The people were silent. Seeing no hope, he climbed the wall and bargained that the Jin spare the people; they agreed. When the gates opened he cast his family into a well, then followed and ordered it filled with earth. The people were spared.
25
Zhao Lingcheng.
26
Zhao Lingcheng was a great-grandson of Prince Yiyi of Yan and elder brother of Prince Anding Lingqin. He was first named Lingpi. Early in Jianyan he was vice prefect of Ezhou, garrisoning Wuchang. The rebel Yan Jin raided Huangzhou and withdrew. Lingcheng crossed the river to reassure the people; Huangzhou calmed. Li Gang recommended him; he was made prefect of Huangzhou with his present name. Ordered to repair the walls, he finished in six months. Soon the bandit Zhang Yu passed the walls and summoned Lingcheng. Knowing he could not hold, he went out; Yu offered wine; he drank it off and said: "I know this is death—spare my soldiers and people." Yu said in alarm: "I was only testing you." He poured poisoned wine on the ground; the earth cracked audibly, and he withdrew. Soon Ding Jin and Li Cheng attacked in turn; he repulsed them both. The rebel Kong Yanzhou besieged the city again; Lingcheng held with militia until the siege lifted after six days.
27
使
In the third year he left for mourning; an edict ordered him back to duty. The Jin learned Empress Dowager Meng was at Nanchang and marched straight on Huangzhou to seize her. Lingcheng was still en route when garrison troops found Jin arrows on the river and brought word of attack. He raced back and entered the city at midnight. The Jin assaulted fiercely; the city fell the next day. They tried to break him; he cursed and refused wine; they dressed him in a battle robe—"How should I wear this?" The Jin said: "Governor Zhao, why are you so stubborn about your knees?" He said: "I bow only to ancestors—not to dogs and swine!" They flogged him until blood covered his face; he cursed them to the end and died. The court posthumously made him Huixian Attendant with the posthumous name Steadfast in Loyalty. The people petitioned for a temple; the court agreed. When the city fell, Controller Wang Da, Administrator Wu Yuan, and Inspector Liu Zhuo also died refusing surrender.
28
Tang Chong, styled Shengren, was from Pengshan in Meizhou. From youth he burned with ambition. He passed the jinshi in Daguan's third year. Huizong examined candidates on rites and music; Chong answered: "Filial piety and brotherhood are the substance of ritual—not mere ceremony. You honor Shenzong as father and Zhezong as brother—live their benevolence; why fixate on formal regulation?" He served as Shu judicial officer, Chengdu professor, magistrate of Jintang, and Imperial College recorder.
29
西
The court prized territorial expansion; frontier generals bribed tribes to "present" barren land and founded prefectures—everywhere brought unrest. He explained the policy's harm to the chancellor, was recommended, and was summoned to court. He rose to vice director of Personnel, left-department director, and drafting attendant.
30
When the Jin took the capital he said: "Opening the frontier began with Tong Guan—the Jin name him chief culprit. Execute Guan and send his head to the Jin—perhaps they will pause." Some urged flight; Chong reported what the guards said, and the court settled on defense. He was made Right Remonstrator. With court divided on war and peace, he asked for open debate. The Jin demanded gold; Wang Xiaodi ordered death for hoarders and rewards for informers. He protested: "Sons will denounce fathers, slaves their masters—is this how a new reign should begin?" He and the censors protested until the order was withdrawn. He repeatedly demanded execution of Cai Jing and his sons. Promoted to drafting attendant, he blocked many edicts. He warned: "Men leap to high office without ever leaving the capital. Send them to the provinces first—as an example." The emperor agreed; the chancellors blocked it. Next day the remonstrators were punished; Chong was sent to govern Tongzhou.
31
使 西使 西 退
The Jin had taken Jin and Jiang and were nearing Tongzhou. Knowing he could not hold, he opened the gates for the people and kept a few hundred men to show he would die defending. The Jin suspected a trap, did not cross the river, and withdrew. An edict praised him and made him Awaiting Drafting Attendant of the Hall of Heavenly Patterns. Earlier Fan Zhixu had led five circuits toward the capital and reached Shanzhou. Chong wrote Fan Zhixu: "The capital relies on Qin armies; the realm relies on the capital. With the capital long besieged, if your armies linger, the root itself shakes. Routed troops block the roads; Guanzhong's stores are empty; and the Western Xia raid the frontier—a threat behind as well as before. Summon Shu and the four Chuan circuits to supply Guanzhong and join Qin and Shu in guarding the throne." Fan Zhixu marched eagerly, was defeated at Qianqiu, fled to Tong Pass, and wasted the five circuits' strength. Chong sent men by secret paths to report to the capital. After the emperors were taken north, he urged the ten Chuan and Qin commanders to prepare to welcome them.
32
西使
When Gaozong rose, Chong memorialized four urgent tasks and five great ills. Urgent tasks: move the court west, enfeoff princes, befriend the Xia, recover allies—to check the enemy. Great ills: proliferating laws, slack discipline, broken armies, empty treasury, lost hearts. Remedy: uphold ancestral law, employ the loyal, and rectify reward and punishment.
33
使使
When Chang'an needed a defender, Liu Cen named Chong; he became Jingzhao prefect and pacification commissioner.
34
西 退 沿
At Tongzhou he had thrice begged the grand marshal to enter Guanzhong. He offered three plans: secure Guanzhong, then Hanzhong and a Shu base—the best plan; hold Nanyang and rally the southeast—the middle plan; cling to Bian and Luo and fortify—the worst defensible plan; march south across the river—no plan at all. At Yongxing he six times begged the court to enter Guanzhong. He detailed the frontier: six hundred li facing the Jin with almost no troops. He begged an additional hundred thousand troops and stored grain to hold Guanzhong.
35
西 便
Seven or eight memorials went unanswered. He wrote: "Guanzhong commands Shaanxi and shields Shu. If Guanzhong holds, Qin and Shu are safe. Commanders would not coordinate. Fan Zhixu's relief armies fought without unified command. He asked for a prince or marshal to command all ten circuits. Only unified command can save the realm and the counties falling away." He asked to command five circuits—silence again.
36
宿使調 使
When Lou crossed the river and took Hancheng, Jingzhao's troops had been stripped for the traveling court. He wrote his father: "Loyalty and filial piety cannot both be served—I will not live to shame you." His father replied: "Die for the state; I will smile in my grave." He told Li Tangru: "I have been loyal all my life and will not shrink from death. I hoped to bring the court to Guanzhong; now it has gone south and I have no troops— The court has gone south and I have no troops—only death remains to serve the throne."
37
滿 使 殿
When the Jin besieged the city he had fewer than a thousand men and held ten days without aid. Fu Liang opened the gates with elite troops; the city fell; Chong fought on with a hundred guards. His officers tried to pull him away; he said: "Death is my duty." He fought until the line broke; a stray arrow killed him. Li Tangru had reported his letter; soon came word of his death. The emperor mourned him, posthumously made him Zizheng academician, and later gave him the posthumous title "Reverent and Sorrowful."
38
Guo Zhongxiao.
39
殿 簿
Guo Zhongxiao, styled Lizhi, of Henan, was son of Deputy Director of Military Affairs Guo Kui. He studied the Changes and the Doctrine of the Mean under Cheng Yi. Through his father he entered as a Right Guard Attendant. He passed the jinshi, took civil rank, and became chief clerk of the Directorate of Imperial Manufactories. After thirty he stayed near his parents, serving in Henan granary posts. In Xuanhe he was Hedong transport commissioner. On the Hedong border hundreds smuggled salt; yearly prosecutions ensnared many. Zhongxiao punished only ringleaders and pardoned the rest. Wang Fu removed him for violating the salt monopoly.
40
At Jingkang's opening he was summoned as Vice Director of the Armory. He denounced peace and urged pursuit: "The Jin are spent and greedy—peace is a ruse to hold our armies. Our armies are gathered—strike them now or never hold them off again." Ordered to debate with Wu Min and Li Gang, he submitted a dozen plans of war and defense. The peace faction prevailed; his plans were rejected. He became Yongxing judicial commissioner and organized the militia. Some proposed drilling a hundred thousand militia for Hebei. Zhongxiao said: "Thirty thousand for the capital suffice; Hebei needs cavalry, not militia." The emperor followed his advice. He rushed to Guan-Shan, raised thirty thousand veterans, and organized them under ten commanders. He then sent troops toward Ze and Lu under the pacification command.
41
When the Jin again attacked the capital, Fan Zhixu, commander of Yongxing, led the armies through Xiao and Mian to provide relief. Zhongxiao said: "The Jin have driven deep in, while Hedong has no defenses. I ask to detach troops to run to the Taihang, block their return route, and force them to come fight; then the siege below the capital can be eased." Fan Zhixu agreed. Orders went to Xi Yi, Tang Chong, and Zhongxiao to raid Hedong while the main army marched out through Hangu Pass. Zhongxiao alone with three thousand men reached Yishi and routed the Jin. He crossed into Jiangzhou, took Taiping Fortress, and slew hundreds. He attacked Pingyang and entered its outer city. When the main army was defeated at Xiao-Mian he withdrew.
42
西 使
When the Jin besieged Yongxing, some urged him to leave on inspection to escape. He refused and split the defense with Tang Chong. Zhongxiao held the west wall; Chong the east. He used divine-bow crossbowmen to keep the Jin from the walls. When the southeast corner fell, Zhongxiao, Chong, Yang Zongmin, Sang Jingxun, Zeng Wei, Wang Shang, and Cheng Di died fighting. The court posthumously made Zhongxiao Grandee of the Palace. His son Yong has a separate biography.
43
使
Cheng Di, styled Huilao, was from Kaifeng. His father Bogu died at Yongle while leading Fuyan troops. Di entered office through hereditary privilege. During Xuanhe, he followed Yang Weizhong against Fang La, won merit, and was promoted to Wugong dafu, Rongzhou training commissioner, and courier commissioner for the Luzhou South and Tongchuanfu circuit.
44
使 使 使 使使
The commissioners jointly recommended Di for loyalty, judgment, and command ability, and he was summoned to the temporary court. As the enemy pressed near, strategic commissioner Tang Zhong kept Di behind to direct troops and organize civilian militia. The Jin had already crossed the Yellow River from Tongzhou. Some urged Di to return to Shu, but Di wanted to repay the state and refused. He then went to the Zhong clan and other local magnates, planning to lead the people into defensible strongpoints and, once the enemy's momentum ebbed, strike by surprise. Transport Commissioner Sang Jingxun learned of his plan and told Tang Chong; Chong posted notices allowing the people to choose defensible strongpoints and hold them themselves. Then former Hedong planning commissioner Fu Liang argued that they should defend rather than withdraw; Chong followed him, made Liang deputy control commissioner, and all who had left returned.
45
使 使
When Jin troops pressed closer, Chong put Di in charge of military forces on Yongxing Route and of organizing civilian militia, and ordered him to inspect the valleys of South Mountain, intending to move gold, silk, and the government seat there. He then summoned local magnates and gathered civilian militia to supplement the military rolls. When many answered the call, Liang told Chong: "With people’s hearts like this, give us ten days and the defenses will be ready; how can we abandon the place at the first rumor of danger?" Chong strongly approved, and at once sent orders to the offices to obey Liang’s command. As the Jin neared the city, Di again wanted to select troops to meet them in battle, allowing the old and young to hurry to the strongpoints; this could still save a hundred thousand people. Liang insisted on defending the city. With the Jin attacking urgently from all sides and no relief outside, Di led the offices and all commanders, subordinate generals, and below to face east and swear an oath: "In this crisis we must answer one another with death, and swear not to live together with the enemy." They were impassioned and choked with tears, and all who swore the oath wept in emotion. When the city fell, the breach began in the sector assigned to Liang. Liang went out first and surrendered, and the troops collapsed. Di led his followers through the ranks, proclaiming to the soldiers: "The enemy hates us; surrender means death, and battle means death!" He urged them to fight with all their strength, shouting in rage until blood flowed from his mouth; the soldiers were moved and roused, and killed many. Di braved flying arrows and fought hand to hand for dozens of bouts; wounds covered nearly his whole body, and after fainting and reviving, he still shouted fiercely for battle until he died. His men carried him into an empty room. The neighboring houses all burned, but that room alone did not catch fire, and when he was encoffined his appearance was as if alive. An edict posthumously made him Observer of Mingzhou, with the posthumous name Gongmin. His son was Chang’e.
46
His son was Chang'e.
47
西 殿
Xu Huiyan, styled Yanyou, was from Xi’an in Quzhou. As a young student, he read broadly in the classics and histories. He was proud-spirited and bold, had unusual ambitions, and liked to talk of achievements and reputation. In the second year of Daguan, when an edict sought talented warriors, Han Zhongyan, Fan Chuncui, and Liu Zhongwu recommended Huiyan in response; he was summoned to Chongde Hall and granted an unmatched passing rank in the military examination.
48
西西 西 使 西
He successively served as supervisor in Baode Commandery; for frontier merit he was promoted to Palace Gate Gentleman, military controller of Pingyang Prefecture, and acting administrator of Baode Commandery. He was reassigned as commander-in-chief of the Hexi forces, and for merit in campaigns against Western Xia he was repeatedly promoted, reaching Bingyi Gentleman. In the fourth year of Xuanhe, when the court was preparing to attack Yan, Zhang Xiaochun, commander at Taiyuan, was ordered to recruit the Hexi tent tribes and sent Huiyan into their territory. The tent tribes resisted and shot at him; Huiyan met them in battle, defeated them, and then secured the two cities of Tiande and Yunnei. The pacification commissioner Tong Guan envied his achievement and sent orders to Taiyuan that it must not violate his command authority. They were then abandoned again. Xiaochun had previously secured Shuo and Wu prefectures, but he too had been unable to hold them. Huiyan was reassigned to administer Huoshan Commandery while concurrently commanding the Hexi troops, and then was transferred to Shizhou.
49
沿使
At the beginning of Jingkang, he was promoted to Wuyi Gentleman and Proclaiming Receptionist of the Palace Gate. The Jin besieged Taiyuan and detached troops to cut the supply routes; from Xi and Shi northward, orders failed to pass for months. Huiyan crossed the river with thirty men and defeated them in one battle. He was promoted to Wujing Gentleman, administrator of Jinning Commandery, and frontier pacification commissioner along the Lan-Shi route.
50
西使西 便西西 使 西
When the Jin again attacked the capital, Shaanxi control commissioner Fan Zhixu gathered troops from five routes to answer the crisis and ordered Huiyan to guard Hexi. Emperor Qinzong ceded the Two He to ease the disaster. Nie Chang, Associate Administrator of the Bureau of Military Affairs, went out to Hedong and was seized by the Jin; acting on expediency, he ceded three Hexi prefectures to Western Xia. The soldiers and people of Jinning were greatly afraid and said: "If Lin, Fu, and Feng are abandoned, how can Jinning alone survive?" Huiyan said: "This is only someone fabricating an edict. The three commanderies are in Hexi; even if there were an edict, we should still hold it and memorialize, all the more when there is none!" He then led troops and recovered the three prefectures; the Xia-appointed guards and chiefs all came out and surrendered, and Huiyan comforted and sent them away. He also took Lan, Shi, and Deng prefectures, training spear-boat soldiers to ride sheepskin floats through the turbulent current and surprise the enemy. The Jin strengthened Kehu Stockade and Wubao Ford, appointed a commander over the nine prefectures, and confronted Jinning from opposite camps. Huiyan sent out surprise troops and drove them away. At that time the commanderies and counties of Hedong had fallen, and the surviving people daily waited for the royal army to arrive. Huiyan secretly joined with local magnates in Fen and Jin, numbering several hundred thousand, agreeing that if they recovered the old territory he would memorialize to appoint them as administrators and chiefs, with hereditary succession allowed. He listed the matter in a memorial, and once approval arrived he intended personally to lead elite armored troops to strike Taiyuan directly, seize Yanmen by a straight route, and leave troops to garrison it; and he added: "If all Jin is secured, the strategic terrain will be ours, and the Central Plain can be recovered on schedule. The opportunity is at hand and must not be missed." When the memorial arrived, an edict ordered Huiyan to obey Wang Shu’s command, and the proposal was blocked.
51
宿 宿 西
The Jin feared Huiyan and wanted to capture Jinning quickly to remove the threat. In the winter of Jianyan 2, they crossed the river from Pujin and besieged it. Earlier, Huiyan had moved to Fuzhou and arranged with Zhe Keshou to attack the Jin from both sides. Keshou surrendered, and Jin general Lousu brought him to the city wall to summon Huiyan. Huiyan had formerly been related to Keshou by marriage, so he climbed the parapet and denounced him with righteous arguments. Keshou looked up and said: "Why are you so utterly without feeling toward me?" Huiyan drew his bow and said sternly: "You have no feeling toward the state; what feeling should I still have toward you? It is not only I who have no feeling; this arrow has even less." One shot struck him; Keshou fled, and Huiyan then sent troops out in a full attack and killed the son of Lousu bojin. At that time everything around Hedong had already fallen; only Jinning stood as a solitary wall, facing a powerful enemy with odds of a hundred to one. Huiyan held the walls for a long time, comforted the exhausted and wounded, sent swimmers across the river, summoned nearly ten thousand people who had fled and hidden in the mountain valleys, floated rafts westward, and fought bitterly with the Jin on the river in dozens of battles large and small, capturing and killing more than commensurate numbers. Jinning was known as one of the world’s strongholds. Huiyan expanded the outer wall, pressed eastward against the river, dug unfathomable moats, built mighty watchtowers and battlements, and kept the defensive equipment very orderly. He ordered the generals to divide the corners among themselves and defend them; when the enemy arrived, each was to fight to the death, while crack troops moved back and forth as roving support.
52
宿 退
The Jin attacked repeatedly and were defeated, failing to get their way, so they tightened the siege further. Jinning customarily did not drink from wells, but fetched water from the river. The Jin carried reeds and stones to dam and choke the branch current; within the city water ran out, stores were gradually exhausted, armor and weapons were empty and worn, and everyone trembled, knowing death would come any day. Huiyan was able to win the people’s hearts. After hunger, wounds, and exhaustion, he gathered broken spears and snapped blades and defended to the death. When he judged that he could no longer hold out, he took the artillery frames, wicker screens, and all defensive equipment and burned them, saying: "Leave nothing for the enemy." He sent someone by a hidden route to carry a letter to his elder brother Changyan, saying: "Huiyan dies alone for the state’s grace; elder brother, strive to serve the ruler." One night, subordinate officers Li Wei and Shi Yun tied a silk letter to a flying arrow and secretly agreed with Lousu to open the outer wall and admit Jin troops. Huiyan and Sun Ang, military supervisor of Taiyuan Route, fought a decisive battle inside the gate, killing many, then withdrew to guard the inner citadel. The Jin attacked without cease. Huiyan placed his wife and children in a room and piled firewood to burn them and himself. He sat in the hall holding a sword and spoke passionately to the officers and soldiers: "I am a territorial minister guarding land for the Son of Heaven; righteousness does not allow me to be humiliated by the enemy’s hand." He then drew his belt knife and aimed it at himself; those around him cried out and rushed to restrain him, while Jin troops swarmed in and carried Huiyan away, though they still feared his authority and reputation.
53
宿 宿 宿 宿使 使 宿 宿 宿
Lousu got someone close to Huiyan to persuade him: "Why not put on cap and robe and meet the Jin commander?" Huiyan rebuked him, saying: "Court dress is the ritual for audience with the ruler and father; can it be used to enter a tent? You have polluted yourself with a false office; instead of dying of shame at once, you take it as glory and wag your tongue as a persuader for the enemy? If you do not leave at once, I still have the strength to strike and kill you." Lousu came to see Huiyan and said: "The two emperors have gone north; for whom are you guarding this place?" Huiyan said: "I guard it for the Jianyan Son of Heaven." Lousu said: "Our troops have already gone south, and affairs in the Central Plain are uncertain; why torment yourself?" Huiyan angrily said: "My regret is that I cannot corpse all of you and return to see the Son of Heaven; I will repay Taizu and Taizong beneath the earth with death, so what do I know of anything else!" Lousu again brought out a Jin decree, saying: "If you can bend a little, we will make you hereditary commander of Yan’an and give you all Shaanxi." Huiyan grew still angrier and cursed: "I have received the state’s deep favor, and death is exactly my place; how could these knees bend for you? You should cut me down yourself and not let anyone else lay hands on me." Lousu raised a halberd toward him, watching for any sign of fear. Huiyan opened his robe to meet the blade, his bearing unchanged. They gave him wine; he took the cup and hurled it at Lousu, saying: "Would I still drink your wine?" He cursed contemptuously without stopping. The Jin knew he could not be made to submit, and shot him dead. When Nianhan heard of his death, he was angry at Lousu and said: "You are coarse and cruel; why did you arbitrarily kill a righteous man to satisfy your private spite?" He punished him very harshly.
54
Earlier, Huiyan and Liu Guangshi had been close friends since youth. Guangshi was ordered to relieve Taiyuan, but when he reached Wubao Ford he simply stopped and did not advance. Huiyan sent a letter urging him to move, but he did not listen; Huiyan also explained that Taiyuan was in danger and could not hold, that it looked day and night for rescue, and that a commander receiving an edict to answer an emergency should not delay stubbornly and incur the crime of disobeying orders; Guangshi still hesitated as before. Huiyan immediately submitted an open memorial impeaching him for stalling, sealed a duplicate and sent it to him, and Guangshi anxiously set out.
55
使使 使
Pacification commissioner Zhang Jun and successive envoys reported the matter of Huiyan’s death for loyalty. Gaozong struck his armrest in shocked grief and turned to the chief ministers, saying: "Xu Huiyan repaid the state by dying at the frontier; facing disaster, he did not submit. His loyalty pierced the sun and moon, far surpassing Yan Zhenqing and Duan Xiushi. Without favoring him, how can we encourage loyalty and display it to later generations?" He was then posthumously made Observer of Jinzhou, with the posthumous name Zhongzhuang. He was again posthumously made Military Commissioner of Zhanghua Commandery.
56
使
Sun Ang also drew a knife and tried to stab himself; the Jin crowded him forward before the army, and he died without submitting. At this time he was posthumously made Chengzhong Gentleman and military training commissioner. Huiyan’s son Gang died in the same loyal act, and his grandnephew Shi also died while defending Anfeng. Ang’s father Yi, at the end of Xuanhe, was administrator of Shuoning Prefecture, rescued Taiyuan, and died in battle. Each generation was known for loyalty and righteousness.
57
Xiang Zishao.
58
使
Xiang Zishao, styled Heqing, of Kaifeng, was a great-grandnephew of Emperor Shenzong. He entered the Imperial College at fifteen and passed the jinshi in Yuanfu's third year. He rose from Jingnan judge to vice transport commissioner of the eastern capital circuit. When Prefect Guo Fengshi offered surplus revenue, Nie Chang wanted to reward him to encourage others. Zishao impeached Fengshi, warning that rewarding surplus-taking would spread; opinion praised him. After mourning he governed Huaining.
59
When the Jin attacked Huaining in Jianyan's second year, he told the people: "This is your ancestors' land—we die here together." Commander Yue Jingshou wanted to flee; Zishao refused; Jingshou sallied and died. He fought in armor, sent a nephew to Zong Ze for aid, and the city fell before help came. He fought in the alleys until captured. They offered wine and demanded his knees; he stood, cursed them, and was killed. His brothers and household perished; only his six-year-old son Hong survived. The court posthumously honored him, ennobled six kin, and gave the posthumous name Loyal and Resolute. When the Jin came, Yang Shi said: "Zishao will surely die." He knew Zishao's character.
60
Yang Bangyi.
61
使
Yang Bangyi, styled Xiji, was from Jishui in Jizhou. He was broadly versed in ancient and recent affairs; he entered the jinshi by the she-selection route, and in a time of many troubles he always took integrity and righteousness as his own charge. He successively served as commandant of Wuyuan and professor in Qi, Lu, and Jiankang commanderies; after change of rank he administered Liyang county. At that time rebel soldier Zhou De occupied the prefectural city and killed officials. Bangyi brought Zhao Ming, a prisoner from the county jail, before the court and was going to execute him, but instead instructed him, saying: "You know all the local heroes. If you can gather your followers and kill the rebels for the townspeople, not only will I pardon your crime, I will report your merit and grant you rank." Ming at once requested to go; Bangyi gave him a cup of wine and let him leave on his own. The next day, the rebels were pacified.
62
西使𤫉 𤫉𤫉 ''
In Jianyan 3, the Jin reached the Yangzi. Gaozong went to western Zhejiang, leaving Right Vice Director Du Chong as imperial-camp commissioner stationed at Jiankang, and ordering Liu Guangshi, Han Shizhong, Wang Yuan, and the other generals all to obey Chong’s command. Chong was cruel by nature and had no strategy, and the soldiers’ hearts did not attach to him. When the Jin crossed Qisha, Chong sent Chen Cui, Yue Fei, and others to fight them at Majia Ford. From chen to wei they fought several engagements, with victory and defeat still undecided. Wang Yuan held his troops and would not rescue them; Chen Cui was captured, Yuan’s troops fled, and Chong surrendered with several thousand followers. The Jin crossed the Yangzi and advanced with drums beating toward the city. At the time Li Shui, as Minister of Revenue, was supervising army provisions, and Chen Bangguang, as Direct Academician of Xianmo Pavilion, was guarding Jiankang. Both prepared surrender documents and went to meet the Jin at Ten-li Pavilion. After Jin commander Wanyan Zongbi entered the city, Shui and Bangguang led the officials and subordinates to welcome him with bows. Only Bangyi would not bend his knees, and in blood he wrote in large characters on his robe: "Better to be a ghost of the Zhao house than a minister of another state." Zongbi could not make him submit. The next day, Zongbi sent someone to persuade Bangyi, promising him his old office. Bangyi struck his head against the base of a pillar until blood flowed and said: "How could there be someone who does not fear death and can yet be moved by profit? Kill me quickly." The next day, Zongbi and the others feasted with Shui and Bangguang in the hall, and made Bangyi stand in the courtyard. Bangyi rebuked Shui and Bangguang, saying: "The Son of Heaven used you to defend the city; when the enemy came you could not resist, and now you feast merrily with them. Do you still have the face to see me?" There was a training officer Liu who showed Bangyi a sheet of paper with the two words "death" and "life" written on it and said: "If you have no more to say and want to die, quickly write the word death." Bangyi vigorously wrote the word "death." The Jin looked at one another in alarm, but still did not dare harm him. Soon Zongbi summoned Bangyi again. Bangyi, unable to restrain his anger, looked toward him from afar and cursed, saying: "You Jurchen plot the Central Plain, but Heaven will not lend it to you for long. Soon you will be torn into ten thousand pieces; how can you defile me!" Zongbi was furious, killed him, and cut out his heart. He was forty-four. When the matter was reported, he was posthumously granted Direct Academician of the Secret Pavilion, given three qing of fields, buried at official expense, granted a temple where he died with the name Praising Loyalty, given the posthumous name Zhongxiang, and his four sons were given offices.
63
When Bangyi was young and lived in the commandery school, his eyes did not look on anything improper. His classmates wanted to break his discipline, so they pulled him out, claiming it was the home of an old acquaintance, when in fact it was a brothel. Bangyi at first did not suspect it. After several rounds of wine, a courtesan appeared; Bangyi was stunned, hurried back to his quarters, removed his clothing and cap and burned them, and wept as he blamed himself. In Shaoxing 7, the Bureau of Military Affairs said that Bangyi’s loyalty and integrity were manifest. The emperor said: "Yan Zhenqing was a loyal minister of another age, and I have already given offices to his descendants. Bangyi died for my integrity; I cannot fail to praise and record him richly, to encourage loyalty and righteousness." He was additionally posthumously granted Attendant Drafter of Huiyou Pavilion, and three more qing of fields were granted.
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