1
姚崇姚崇，字元之，陝州硤石人。 父懿，字善懿，貞觀中，為巂州都督，贈幽州大都督，諡文獻。
Yao Chong, whose courtesy name was Yuanzhi, came from Xiashi in Shaanzhou. His father Yao Yi, courtesy name Shanyi, had served as commissioner of Yi Prefecture during the Zhenguan reign and was posthumously honored as Grand Military Commissioner of You Prefecture with the posthumous name Wenxian.
2
崇少倜儻，尚氣節，長乃好學。 仕為孝敬挽郎，舉下筆成章，授濮州司倉參軍，五遷夏官郎中。 契丹擾河北，兵檄叢進，崇奏決若流，武后賢之，即拜侍郎。 後嘗語左右：「往周興、來俊臣等數治詔獄，朝臣相逮引，一切承反。 朕意其枉，更畏近臣臨問，皆得其手牒不冤，朕無所疑，即可其奏。 自俊臣等誅，遂無反者，然則向論死得無冤邪？」 崇曰：「自垂拱後，被告者類自誣。 當是時，以告言為功，故天下號曰'羅織'，甚於漢之鉤黨。 雖陛下使近臣覆訊，彼尚不自保，敢一搖手以悖酷吏意哉！ 且被問不承，則重罹其慘，如張虔勖、李安靜等皆是也。 今賴天之靈，發寤陛下，凶豎殲夷，朝廷乂安，臣以一門百口保內外官無復反者。 陛下以告牒置弗推，後若反有端，臣請坐知而不告。」 後悅曰：「前宰相務順可，陷我為淫刑主，聞公之言，乃得朕心。」 賜銀千兩。
In his youth Yao Chong was dashing and independent-minded, holding fast to principle; only later did he turn seriously to study. He began his career as a funeral attendant for the Prince of Respectful Filiality, passed the examination for fluent composition on the spot, was appointed assistant in the granary office of Pu Prefecture, and rose through five promotions to become a director in the Ministry of War. When the Khitan raided Hebei and military dispatches flooded in, Yao Chong's decisions flowed as swiftly as his drafts. Empress Wu admired his ability and promptly appointed him vice minister. The Empress once told her attendants, "In the past Zhou Xing, Lai Junchen, and others ran repeated political trials, and court officials were dragged in one after another until everyone confessed to treason. I suspected they were innocent, but when my close ministers questioned them, every case came back with written confessions and no sign of injustice, so I had no doubts and approved the verdicts at once. Since Junchen and his ilk were executed there have been no more rebels—so were all those earlier death sentences free of injustice? Yao Chong replied, "Since the Chui Gong era most defendants ended up falsely incriminating themselves. Accusation itself counted as merit then, and the realm called the practice 'fabricating charges,' worse than the partisan prosecutions of Han. Even when Your Majesty sent close ministers to reinvestigate, they could not protect themselves—who would dare lift a finger against the cruel prosecutors' will? And if a prisoner under interrogation refused to confess, he suffered their cruelty all over again, as Zhang Qianxu and Li Anjing did. Now, thanks to Heaven's grace, Your Majesty has awakened, the villains have been destroyed, and the court is at peace. I stake the lives of my entire household on there being no more rebels among officials within or without the palace. If Your Majesty sets aside accusation documents without pursuing them, and rebellion later shows any sign of it, I ask to be punished for knowing and failing to report it. The Empress said with pleasure, "Former chancellors only sought to please me and made me out to be a tyrant of cruel punishments. Hearing your words, you have won my heart. She rewarded him with a thousand taels of silver.
3
聖曆三年，進同鳳閣鸞台平章事。 遷鳳閣侍郎，俄兼相王府長史，以母老納政歸侍，乃詔以相王府長史侍疾，月餘，復兼夏官尚書、同鳳閣鸞台三品。 崇建言：「臣事相王，而夏官本兵，臣非惜死，恐不益王。」 乃詔改春官。 張易之私有請於崇，崇不納，易之譖於後，降司僕卿，猶同鳳閣鸞台三品。 出為靈武道大總管。
In the third year of Shenglì he was promoted to associate director of the Phoenix Pavilion and Crane Terrace. He was transferred to vice director of the Phoenix Pavilion and soon also served as chief administrator of the Prince of Xiang's household. When his mother grew old he resigned to care for her at home, so an edict named him chief administrator of the prince's household to attend her illness. After a month he again held the post of minister of war with third rank at the Phoenix Pavilion and Crane Terrace. Yao Chong submitted a proposal: "I serve the Prince of Xiang, yet the Ministry of War controls the armies. It is not that I begrudge my life, but I fear the post will not benefit the prince. An edict then transferred him to the Ministry of Rites. Zhang Yizhi made a private request of Yao Chong, who refused. Yizhi slandered him to the Empress, and Chong was demoted to vice director of the imperial stud while retaining third rank at the Phoenix Pavilion and Crane Terrace. He was sent out as grand commander of the Lingwu circuit.
4
張柬之等謀誅二張，崇適自屯所還，遂參計議。 以功封梁縣侯，實封二百戶。 後遷上陽宮，中宗率百官起居，王公更相慶，崇獨流涕。 柬之等曰：「今豈涕泣時邪？ 恐公禍由此始。」 崇曰：「比與討逆，不足以語功，然事天后久，違舊主而泣，人臣終節也，由此獲罪甘心焉。」 俄為亳州刺史。 後五王被害，而崇獨免。 曆宋、常、越、許四州。 睿宗立，拜兵部尚書、同中書門下三品，進中書令。
When Zhang Jianzhi and others plotted to kill the two Zhang brothers, Yao Chong happened to return from his garrison and joined their deliberations. For his merit he was enfeoffed as Marquis of Liang County with a substantive fief of two hundred households. After the court moved to Shangyang Palace, Emperor Zhongzong led the officials in attendance while princes and dukes congratulated one another; Yao Chong alone wept. Jianzhi and the others said, "Is this a time for tears? I fear your downfall will begin from this. Yao Chong said, "Our part in putting down rebellion hardly counts as merit, but I served the Heavenly Empress for many years. To weep for one's former sovereign is a minister's final duty. If I am punished for it, I accept that gladly." Soon afterward he was appointed prefect of Bo. Later, when the Five Princes were killed, Yao Chong alone escaped harm. He served in succession as prefect of Song, Chang, Yue, and Xu. When Emperor Ruizong took the throne, Yao Chong was appointed minister of war and third-rank chancellor, then promoted to director of the Secretariat.
5
玄宗在東宮，太平公主干政，宋王成器等分典閑廄、禁兵。 崇與宋璟建請主就東都，出諸王為刺史，以壹人心。 帝以謂主，主怒。 太子懼，上疏以崇等槊間王室，請加罪，貶為申州刺史。 移徐、潞二州，遷揚州長史。 政條簡肅，人為紀德於碑。 徙同州刺史。
While Xuanzong was crown prince, Princess Taiping meddled in government, and the Prince of Song Chengqi and others separately controlled the spare stables and the palace guard. Yao Chong and Song Jing proposed that the princess retire to the eastern capital and that the princes be sent out as prefects to unify the realm's allegiance. The emperor reported the plan to the princess, and she grew furious. The crown prince, fearing for himself, memorialized that Chong and the others were driving a wedge into the royal house and asked that they be punished; Yao Chong was demoted to prefect of Shen. He was transferred through Xu and Lu, then appointed chief administrator of Yangzhou. His administration was simple and austere, and the people recorded his virtue on stone monuments. He was transferred to prefect of Tong.
6
先天二年，玄宗講武新豐。 故事，天子行幸，牧守在三百里者，得詣行在。 時帝亦密召崇，崇至，帝方獵渭濱，即召見，帝曰：「公知獵乎？」 對曰：「少所習也。 臣年二十，居廣成澤，以呼鷹逐獸為樂。 張憬藏謂臣當位王佐，無自棄，故折節讀書，遂待罪將相。 然少為獵師，老而猶能。」 帝悅，與俱馳逐，緩速如旨，帝歡甚。 既罷，乃咨天下事，袞袞不知倦。 帝曰：「卿宜遂相朕。」 崇知帝大度，銳於治，乃先設事以堅帝意，即陽不謝，帝怪之。 崇因跪奏：「臣願以十事聞，陛下度不可行，臣敢辭。」 帝曰：「試為朕言之。」 崇曰：「垂拱以來，以峻法繩下； 臣願政先仁恕，可乎？ 朝廷覆師青海，未有牽復之悔； 臣願不倖邊功，可乎？ 比來壬佞冒觸憲網，皆得以寵自解； 臣願法行自近，可乎？ 後氏臨朝，喉舌之任出閹人之口； 臣願宦豎不與政，可乎？ 戚裏貢獻以自媚於上，公卿方鎮浸亦為之； 臣願租賦外一絕之，可乎？ 外戚貴主更相用事，班序荒雜； 臣請戚屬不任台省，可乎？ 先朝褻狎大臣，虧君臣之嚴； 臣願陛下接之以禮，可乎？ 燕欽融、韋月將以忠被罪，自是諍臣沮折； 臣願群臣皆得批逆鱗，犯忌諱，可乎？ 武后造福先寺，上皇造金仙、玉真二觀，費钜百萬； 臣請絕道佛營造，可乎？ 漢以祿、莽、閻、梁亂天下，國家為甚； 臣願推此鑒戒為萬代法，可乎？」 帝曰：「朕能行之。」 崇乃頓首謝。 翌日，拜兵部尚書、同中書門下三品。 封梁國公。 遷紫微令。 固辭實封，乃停舊食，賜新封百戶。
In the second year of Xiantian, Emperor Xuanzong held a military review at Xinfeng. By precedent, when the emperor traveled, prefects and military commissioners within three hundred li could present themselves at the temporary court. The emperor also secretly summoned Yao Chong. When Chong arrived, the emperor was hunting on the Wei River and received him at once. The emperor asked, "Do you know hunting? He replied, "I practiced it somewhat in my youth. At twenty I lived at Guangcheng Marsh and took my pleasure in flying hawks after game. Zhang Jingzang told me I was fit to serve as a king's right hand and must not throw my life away, so I disciplined myself and took up study, and thus I now stand among chancellors and generals awaiting judgment. Though I was a huntsman in youth, I can still manage it in old age. The emperor was pleased and rode in chase with him, keeping pace exactly as the emperor wished, and was greatly delighted. When the hunt ended, he consulted Chong on affairs throughout the realm, talking on and on without weariness. The emperor said, "You ought to become my chancellor at once. Knowing the emperor was magnanimous and keen to govern, Yao Chong first laid out certain matters to test his resolve, then openly declined to thank him. The emperor found this strange. Yao Chong then knelt and said, "I wish to lay ten matters before you. If Your Majesty judges any of them unfeasible, I dare decline the post. The emperor said, "Tell me what they are." Yao Chong said, "Since the Chui Gong era harsh laws have bound those below; I ask that governance put benevolence and forbearance first—may this be done? the court lost its army at Qinghai without repenting of overreach; I ask that we not chase lucky frontier victories—may this be done? of late crafty flatterers who broke the law have all escaped through favor; I ask that the law be enforced beginning with those close at hand—may this be done? when the Empress held court, the power of speech came from eunuchs; I ask that palace eunuchs not share in government—may this be done? imperial in-laws sent tribute to curry favor, and grandees and frontier commissioners gradually followed suit; I ask that all such gifts beyond rent and tax be abolished at a stroke—may this be done? consorts' kin and honored princesses took turns wielding power, and court ranks fell into disorder; I ask that imperial kin not hold posts in the central ministries—may this be done? the former court treated great ministers too familiarly, impairing the dignity between ruler and minister; I ask that Your Majesty receive them with proper ritual—may this be done? Yan Qinrong and Wei Yuejiang were punished for loyalty, and remonstrating ministers have been broken ever since; I ask that all ministers be free to speak against the grain and violate taboo—may this be done? Empress Wu built the Xian Temple at vast expense, and the Retired Emperor built the Jinxian and Yuzhen abbeys, costing millions; I ask that Daoist and Buddhist construction be ended—may this be done? Han was thrown into disorder by the Lu, Wang, Yan, and Liang clans, and our dynasty has suffered even more; I ask that this lesson be made law for ten thousand generations—may this be done? The emperor said, "I can carry these out." Yao Chong then bowed his head in thanks. The next day he was appointed minister of war and third-rank chancellor. He was enfeoffed as Duke of Liang. He was transferred to director of the Purple Forbidden Secretariat. He firmly declined the substantive fief, so his old sustenance was stopped and a new fief of a hundred households was granted instead.
7
中宗時，近戚奏度僧尼，溫戶強丁因避賦役。 至是，崇建言：「佛不在外，悟之於心。 行事利益，使蒼生安穩，是謂佛理。 烏用奸人以汨真教？」 帝善之，詔天下汰僧偽濫，發而農者余萬二千人。
Under Emperor Zhongzong, imperial in-laws petitioned to ordain monks and nuns, and prosperous households sent strong young men into the clergy to escape taxes and corvée. At this time Yao Chong submitted a proposal: "The Buddha is not outside us; enlightenment lies in the heart. To act for the common good and keep the people secure and settled—that is Buddhist principle. Why let treacherous men defile the true teaching? The emperor approved it and ordered the realm to weed out false and excessive clergy; more than twelve thousand who were released returned to farming.
8
崇嘗於帝前序次郎吏，帝左右顧，不主其語。 崇懼，再三言之，卒不答，崇趨出。 內侍高力士曰：「陛下新即位，宜與大臣裁可否。 今崇亟言，陛下不應，非虛懷納誨者。」 帝曰：「我任崇以政，大事吾當與決，至用郎吏，崇顧不能而重煩我邪？」 崇聞乃安。 由是進賢退不肖而天下治。
Yao Chong once ranked the clerks in order before the emperor, but the emperor looked about and paid no attention. Yao Chong grew afraid and repeated himself again and again, but received no answer and hurried out. The inner attendant Gao Lishi said, "Your Majesty has newly taken the throne; you ought to decide with your great ministers what may or may not be done. Now Chong speaks urgently and Your Majesty does not respond—that is not the conduct of one who openly receives counsel. The emperor said, "I entrust Chong with government; on great affairs I decide with him. As for appointing clerks—does he think I cannot handle that and must trouble me again?" When Yao Chong heard this he was reassured. From then on he advanced the worthy and removed the unworthy, and the realm was well governed.
9
開元四年，山東大蝗，民祭且拜，坐視食苗不敢捕。 崇奏：「《詩》云：'秉彼蟊賊，付畀炎火。 '漢光武詔曰：'勉順時政，勸督農桑。 去彼螟域，以及蟊賊。 '此除蝗誼也。 且蝗畏人易驅，又田皆有主，使自救其地，必不憚勸。 請夜設火，坎其旁，且焚且瘞，蝗乃可盡。 古有討除不勝者，特人不用命耳。」 乃出御史為捕蝗使，分道殺蝗。 汴州刺史倪若水上言：「除天災者當以德，昔劉聰除蝗不克而害愈甚。」 拒御史不應命。 崇移書誚之曰：「聰偽主，德不勝祆，今祆不勝德。 古者良守，蝗避其境，謂修德可免，彼將無德致然乎？ 今坐視食苗，忍而不救，因以無年，刺史其謂何？」 若水懼，乃縱捕，得蝗十四萬石。 時議者喧嘩，帝疑，復以問崇，對曰：「庸儒泥文不知變。 事固有違經而合道，反道而適權者。 昔魏世山東蝗，小忍不除，至人相食； 後奏有蝗，草木皆盡，牛馬至相啖毛。 今飛蝗所在充滿，加復蕃息，且河南、河北家無宿藏，一不獲則流離，安危系之。 且討蝗縱不能盡，不愈於養以遺患乎？」 帝然之。 黃門監盧懷慎曰：「凡天災，安可以人力制也！ 且殺蟲多，必戾和氣。 願公思之。」 崇曰：「昔楚王吞蛭而厥疾瘳，叔敖斷虵福乃降。 今蝗幸可驅，若縱之，穀且盡，如百姓何？ 殺蟲救人，禍歸於崇，不以諉公也！」 蝗害訖息。
In the fourth year of Kaiyuan eastern Shandong suffered a great locust plague; the people sacrificed and bowed to the insects, watching them devour the seedlings without daring to kill them. Yao Chong memorialized, "The Odes say, 'Take up those injurious pests and deliver them to blazing fire. Emperor Guangwu of Han's edict says, 'Exhort compliance with the season's policies and urge supervision of farming and sericulture.' Drive off those stem-borers and reach the injurious pests as well. This is the very meaning of eliminating locusts. Moreover, locusts fear people and are easily driven off, and every field has an owner; if people are made to save their own land, they will surely heed encouragement. I ask that fires be set by night with pits dug beside them; burning and burying together, the locusts can then be destroyed completely. In antiquity campaigns to eliminate them sometimes failed only because people did not obey orders. Censors were then sent out as locust commissioners, each on his own route to kill the pests. Ni Ruoshui, prefect of Bian, submitted, "He who removes Heaven's calamities ought to rely on virtue. Formerly Liu Cong tried to eliminate locusts without success and the harm grew worse. Ruoshui refused the imperial censors and would not comply with the order. Yao Chong sent a letter rebuking him: "Liu Cong was a usurper; virtue could not overcome evil omens—yet now evil omens cannot overcome virtue. In antiquity worthy prefects saw locusts shun their jurisdictions; people held that cultivating virtue could ward them off—will you claim those men lacked virtue and brought this on themselves? Now you sit by while they devour the young crops, refusing to act, and thereby invite famine—what is a prefect to be called? Terrified, Ruoshui at last permitted extermination; one hundred forty thousand piculs of locusts were collected. Opinion at court was loud and divided; the emperor hesitated and questioned Chong again. He answered, "Mediocre scholars cling to the letter of the law and do not know how to adapt. There are matters that breach canonical precedent yet accord with principle, and cases that defy principle yet serve expedient need. In Wei times locusts plagued the eastern provinces; because removal was delayed, people eventually ate one another; later, when locusts were again reported, vegetation was stripped bare and cattle and horses gnawed each other's hides. Flying locusts now swarm everywhere and breed anew; in Henan and Hebei families have no reserves—one failed harvest means exile, and the realm's security hangs in the balance. Even if extermination cannot be complete, is that not still better than tolerating them and bequeathing disaster? The emperor was persuaded. Lu Huaishen, Supervisor of the Yellow Gate, objected: "Heaven sends calamities—how can mere human effort restrain them! Besides, mass slaughter of living things must disturb the cosmic harmony. I urge you to reconsider. Chong replied, "King Zhuang of Chu once swallowed a leech and was healed; Sunshu Ao killed a serpent and fortune followed. These locusts can still be driven away; if we release them, the harvest will be lost—what then becomes of the people? If slaying pests saves lives, let the blame fall on me—not on you, my lord! The locust plague was finally brought under control.
10
於是，帝方躬萬機，朝夕詢逮，它宰相畏帝威決，皆謙憚，唯獨崇佐裁決，故得專任。 崇第賒僻，因近舍客廬。 會懷慎卒，崇病{疒占}移告，凡大政事，帝必令源乾曜就咨焉。 乾曜所奏善，帝則曰：「是必崇畫之。」 有不合，則曰：「胡不問崇？」 乾曜謝其未也，乃已。 帝欲崇自近，詔徙寓四方館，日遣問食飲起居，高醫、尚食踵道。 崇以館局華大，不敢居。 帝使語崇曰：「恨不處禁中，此何避？」 久之，紫微史趙誨受夷人賕，當死。 崇素親倚，署奏營減，帝不悅。 時曲赦京師，惟誨不原。 崇惶懼，上還宰政，引宋璟代，乃以開府儀同三司罷政事。
The emperor now personally directed state affairs and consulted Chong morning and evening. Other chancellors, awed by his decisive authority, held back; only Chong assisted in judgment, and so held effective monopoly of power. Chong's own house was dilapidated and out of the way, so he rented lodgings nearby. When Huaishen died, Chong fell ill with malaria and took leave; on every major policy question the emperor sent Yuan Qianyao to consult him. When Qianyao's recommendations were sound, the emperor would say, "Chong must have drafted this." When they missed the mark, he would say, "Why did you not consult Chong?" Qianyao would apologize for the oversight, and the matter would rest. Wishing Chong close at hand, the emperor had him moved to the Four Directions Hostel and sent daily inquiries about his meals and health; court physicians and palace caterers attended him in succession. Chong found the hostel too grand and declined to occupy it. The emperor sent word: "I only regret you are not inside the palace itself—why shrink from this?" In time Zhao Hui, an assistant in the Bureau of Astronomy, was found to have taken bribes from foreigners and faced execution. Chong, who had long favored him, submitted a plea for leniency; the emperor was displeased. A general amnesty was proclaimed for the capital, but Zhao Hui alone was excluded. Fearing for himself, Chong resigned the chancellorship, recommended Song Jing as successor, and was relieved of office with the honorific rank of Defender-in-Chief.
11
帝將幸東都，而太廟屋自壞，帝問宰相，宋璟、蘇頲同對曰：「三年之喪未終，不可以行幸。 壞壓之變，天所以示教戒，陛下宜停東巡，修德以答至譴。」 帝以問崇，對曰：「臣聞隋取苻堅故殿以營廟，而唐因之。 且山有朽壞乃崩，況木積年而木自當蠹乎。 但壞與行會，不緣行而壞。 且陛下以關中無年，輪餉告勞，因以幸東都，所以為人不為己也。 百司已戒，供擬既具，請車駕如行期。 舊廟難復完，盡奉神主舍太極殿？ 更作新廟，申誠奉，大孝之德也。」 帝曰：「卿言正契朕意。」 賜絹二百匹，詔所司如崇言，天子遂東。 因詔五日一參，入閣供奉。
When the emperor planned a journey to the Eastern Capital, the ancestral temple roof collapsed. He asked his chancellors; Song Jing and Su Ting jointly replied, "The three-year mourning period is not complete—you must not travel. This collapse is Heaven's warning. Your Majesty should cancel the eastern tour and cultivate virtue to answer the divine rebuke." The emperor turned to Chong, who answered, "I have heard that the Sui dynasty took Fu Jian's old hall to build the temple, and Tang inherited it. Mountains collapse when their timbers rot—how much more should beams that have stood for years be eaten by worms? The collapse merely coincided with your planned journey; the journey did not cause the collapse. Moreover, you travel east because Guanzhong has no harvest and grain transport is exhausted—this is for the people, not for yourself. All ministries are prepared and supplies ready. I beg Your Majesty to depart on schedule. The old temple cannot be fully restored—might we house the spirit tablets in the Hall of Supreme Ultimate? To build a new temple and offer sincere worship—that is the height of filial devotion." The emperor said, "Your counsel matches my own mind exactly." He rewarded Chong with two hundred bolts of silk, ordered the ministries to follow his plan, and proceeded east. Chong was thereafter summoned to court every five days to attend in the inner pavilion.
12
八年，授太子少保，以疾不拜。 明年卒，年七十二。 贈揚州大都督，諡曰文獻。 十七年，追贈太子太保。
In the eighth year he was named Junior Mentor to the Heir Apparent but declined on grounds of illness. He died the following year at seventy-two. He was posthumously enfeoffed as Defender-in-Chief of Yangzhou with the posthumous name Wenxian. In the seventeenth year he was further posthumously honored as Grand Guardian of the Heir Apparent.
13
崇析貲產，令諸子各有定分。 治令曰：
Chong divided his estate and assigned each son a fixed share. His final instructions read:
14
style=color:#40e0d0|比見達宦之裔多貧困，至銖尺是競，無論曲直，均受絜，詆。 田宅水磑既共有之，至相推倚以頓廢。 陸賈、石苞，古達者也，亦先有定分，以絕後爭。
I have often seen children of great ministers end in poverty, quarreling over trifles; whether in the right or wrong, all alike are mocked and slandered. When fields, houses, and mills are held in common, heirs shove responsibility onto one another until the property is ruined. Lu Jia and Shi Bao, wise men of old, likewise fixed shares in advance to forestall later disputes.
15
昔楊震、趙明、盧植、張奐咸以薄葬，知真識去身，貴速朽耳。 夫厚葬之家流於俗，以奢靡為孝，令死者戮屍暴骸，可不痛哉！ 死者無知，自同糞土，豈煩奢葬； 使其有知，神不在柩，何用破貲徇侈乎？ 吾亡，斂以常服，四時衣各一稱。 性不喜冠衣，毋以入墓。 紫衣玉帶，足便於體。
Yang Zhen, Zhao Ming, Lu Zhi, and Zhang Huan all chose plain burials, knowing the body is fleeting and honoring swift return to dust. Families that bury lavishly follow fashion, mistaking extravagance for filial piety—yet the dead are dug up and desecrated. How pitiful! The dead know nothing; they are no different from soil—why waste wealth on grand tombs; and if they did know, their spirits would not linger in the coffin—why squander fortune on vanity? When I die, dress me in ordinary clothes—one suit for each season, no more. I never cared for formal caps and gowns in life—do not bury them with me. Purple robes and jade belts are comfortable enough for daily wear.
16
今之佛經，羅什所譯，姚興與之對翻，而興命不延，國亦隨滅。 梁武帝身為寺奴，齊胡太后以六宮入道，皆亡國殄家。 近孝和皇帝發使贖生，太平公主、武三思等度人造寺，身嬰夷戮，為天下笑。 五帝之時，父不喪子，兄不哭弟，致仁壽，無凶短也。 下逮三王，國祚延久，其臣則彭祖、老聃皆得長齡，此時無佛，豈抄經鑄像力邪？ 緣死喪造經像，以為追福。 夫死者生之常，古所不免，彼經與像何所施為？ 兒曹慎不得為此！ 崇尤長吏道，處決無淹思。 三為宰相，常兼兵部，故屯戊斥候、士馬儲械，無不諳記。 玄宗初立，賓禮大臣故老，雅尊遇崇，每見便殿，必為之興，去輒臨軒以送，它相莫如也。 時承權戚幹政之後，綱紀大壞，先天末，宰相至十七人，台省要職不可數。 崇常先有司罷冗職，修制度，擇百官各當其材，請無廣釋道，無數移吏。 繇是天子責成于下，而權歸於上矣。
The Buddhist scriptures we have were translated by Kumarajiva while Yao Xing sat opposite him—yet Yao Xing died young and his kingdom perished. Emperor Wu of Liang became a temple servant; the Northern Qi Empress Dowager Hu sent the palace women to take vows—both dynasties were destroyed. More recently Emperor Xiahe sent agents to buy the release of animals; Princess Taiping, Wu Sansi, and others ordained followers and built temples—yet they were executed and became a laughingstock. Under the Five Emperors, fathers did not bury sons nor brothers mourn brothers—yet they lived long in peace without untimely death. Through the Three Dynasties, states endured for centuries; Peng Zu and Laozi lived to great age—before Buddhism existed. Did they owe their longevity to copying sutras and casting images? People now commission scriptures and statues at funerals, imagining they can buy merit for the dead. Death is the natural end of life, unavoidable since antiquity—of what use are sutras and statues? My sons: see that you never do such things! Chong excelled above all in the arts of governance; he decided matters without hesitation. Three times chancellor, he usually also headed the Ministry of War, and knew by heart every garrison, scout post, troop disposition, and store of arms. When Xuanzong first ascended the throne he honored veteran ministers; Chong he treated with special esteem—rising whenever Chong entered the side hall and walking to the front steps to see him off, a courtesy granted no other chancellor. He inherited a court where powerful consort clans had shattered discipline; by the end of the Xiantian era there were seventeen chancellors and innumerable key posts in the secretariats and censorate. Chong pressed agencies to eliminate redundant offices, restore proper regulations, assign men to posts matching their abilities, curb Buddhist patronage, and stop constant reshuffling of officials. Thus the emperor held subordinates accountable while authority returned to the throne.
17
然資權譎。 始為同州，張說以素憾，諷趙彥昭劾崇。 及當國，說懼，潛詣岐王申款。 崇它日朝，眾趨出，崇曳踵為有疾狀，帝召問之，對曰：「臣損足。」 曰：「無甚痛乎？」 曰：「臣心有憂，痛不在足。」 問以故，曰：「岐王陛下愛弟，張說輔臣，而密乘車出入王家，恐為所誤，故憂之。」 於是出說相州。 魏知古，崇所引，及同列，稍輕之，出攝吏部尚書，知東都選，知古憾焉。 時崇二子在洛，通賓客饋遺，憑舊請托。 知古歸，悉以聞。 他日，帝召崇曰：「卿子才乎，皆安在？」 崇揣知帝意，曰：「臣二子分司東都，其為人多欲而寡慎，是必嘗以事幹魏知古。」 帝始以崇私其子，或為隱，微以言動之。 及聞，乃大喜，問：「安從得之？」 對曰：「知古，臣所薦也，臣子必謂其見德而請之。」 帝於是愛崇不私而薄知古，欲斥之。 崇曰：「臣子無狀，橈陛下法，而逐知古，外必謂陛下私臣。」 乃止，然卒罷為工部尚書。
Yet he was also resourceful and calculating in the use of power. While prefect of Tongzhou, he incurred Zhang Shuo's lasting enmity; Shuo induced Zhao Yanzhao to impeach him. Once Chong held power, Shuo grew afraid and secretly sought favor with the Prince of Qi. On another court day, as officials hurried out, Chong limped as if lame. The emperor called him back and asked; Chong said, "I have hurt my foot." The emperor asked, "Does it hurt much?" Chong answered, "My heart is troubled—the pain is not in my foot." Pressed for the cause, he said, "The Prince of Qi is your beloved brother and Zhang Shuo a chief minister—yet Shuo visits the prince's house by night in a closed carriage. I fear he may lead the prince astray, and that is my worry." Zhang Shuo was thereupon exiled as prefect of Xiangzhou. Wei Zhigu, whom Chong had promoted, was gradually slighted once they shared rank; Chong had him sent to oversee personnel selection at Luoyang, and Zhigu resented the demotion. Meanwhile Chong's two sons in Luoyang entertained guests, accepted gifts, and traded on their father's influence. On returning to court, Zhigu reported everything to the emperor. On another occasion the emperor asked Chong, "Are your sons capable? Where are they now?" Chong divined the emperor's meaning and replied, "My two sons hold posts in Luoyang. They are greedy and careless—they must have importuned Wei Zhigu." The emperor had suspected Chong would shield his sons and probed him obliquely. " Hearing this frank answer, he was delighted and asked, "How did you know?" Chong said, "Zhigu is a man I advanced; my sons would assume he owed them favor and approached him." The emperor admired Chong's impartiality and turned against Zhigu, intending to remove him. Chong pleaded, "My sons have misbehaved, yet if you dismiss Zhigu, outsiders will say you favor me." The emperor relented, but Zhigu was eventually demoted to Minister of Works.
18
崇始名元崇，以與突厥叱剌同名，武后時以字行； 至開元世，避帝號，更以今名。 三子：彝、異、弈，皆至卿、刺史。 子弈弈少修謹。 始，崇欲使不越官次而習知吏道，故自右千牛進至太子舍人，皆平遷。 開元中，有事五陵，有司以鷹犬從，弈曰：「非禮也。」 奏罷之。 請治劇，為睢陽太守，召授太僕卿。 後為尚書右丞。 子閎，居右相牛仙客幕府。 仙客病甚，閎強使薦弈及盧奐為宰相，仙客妻以聞，閎坐死，弈貶永陽太守，卒。 曾孫合曾孫合、勖。 合，元和中進士及第，調武功尉，善詩，世號姚武功者。 遷監察御史，累轉給事中。 奉先、馮翊二縣民訴牛羊使奪其田，詔美原主簿硃儔覆按，猥以田歸使，合劾發其私，以地還民。 曆陝虢觀察使，終秘書監。 曾孫勗勖字斯勤。 長慶初擢進士第，數為使府表辟，進監察御史，佐鹽鐵使務。 累遷諫議大夫，更湖、常二州刺史。 為宰相李德裕厚善。 及德裕為令狐綯等譖逐，擿索支黨，無敢通勞問； 既海上，家無資，病無湯劑，勖數饋餉候問，不傅時為厚薄。 終夔王傅。 自作壽藏于萬安山南原崇塋之旁，署兆曰「寂居穴」，墳曰「復真堂」，中剟土為床曰「化台」，而刻石告後世。 宋璟宋璟，邢州南和人。 七世祖弁為元魏吏部尚書。 璟耿介有大節，好學，工文辭，舉進士中第。 調上党尉，為監察御史，遷鳳閣舍人。 居官鯁正，武后高其才。 張易之誣御史大夫魏元忠有不臣語，引張說為驗，將廷辯，說惶遽，璟謂說曰：「名義至重，不可陷正人以求苟免。 緣此受謫，芬香多矣。 若不測者，吾且叩閣救，將與子偕死。」 說感其言，以實對，元忠免死。
Chong was originally named Yuanchong; because this matched the name of a Türk chieftain, he used his courtesy name during Empress Wu's reign; and in the Kaiyuan era, to avoid the emperor's taboo, adopted his present name. He had three sons—Yi, Yi, and Yi—each rising to ministerial rank or provincial governorship. His son Yi was from youth careful and self-restrained. Chong had wished him to learn administration without skipping ranks; from Right Palace Guard through Crown Prince's Attendant, every promotion was by regular step. During Kaiyuan, when rites were performed at the imperial mausoleums, officials brought hawks and hounds; Yi objected, "This is improper." He memorialized and the practice was abolished. Yi asked to administer Ju, became prefect of Suiyang, then was recalled and made Grand Master of the Herds. He later served as Vice Minister of the Right. His son Hong was in the secretariat of Right Chancellor Niu Xianke. As Xianke lay dying, Hong forced him to nominate Yi and Lu Huan for the chancellorship. The wife informed the throne; Hong was put to death, Yi was banished to Yongyang as prefect, and died in exile. His great-grandsons were He and Xu. He passed the jinshi in the Yuanhe reign, served as sheriff of Wugong, and became famed as a poet—the world knew him as Yao of Wugong. He rose to surveillance censor and eventually to Supervising Secretary. When peasants in Fengxian and Fengyi accused the cattle-and-sheep commissioner of seizing their fields, the court sent Zhu Chou of Meiyuan to review the case; he corruptly awarded the land to the commissioner. He exposed the fraud and restored the fields to their owners. He became Shaanxi-Guo observation commissioner and died as Director of the Secretariat. Another great-grandson, Xu, whose courtesy name was Sijin. At the start of Changqing he took the jinshi; repeatedly recruited to provincial staffs, he became a surveillance censor and helped run salt-and-iron affairs. He rose to Remonstrance Grandee and served in turn as prefect of Hu and Chang. He was a warm friend of Chancellor Li Deyu. After Deyu was framed by Linghu Tao and exiled, investigators hunted his allies, and no one dared even send condolences; banished overseas, Deyu was penniless and without medicine; Xu kept sending food and asking after him, heedless of whether the court favored or hated him. He died in office as tutor to the Prince of Kui. He prepared his own tomb on the southern slope of Mount Wan'an next to the family grave, naming the plot the Cave of Silent Dwelling and the chamber the Hall of Returning to Truth; inside he cut an earthen bed called the Platform of Transformation and left an inscription for later ages. Song Jing was from Nanhe in Xingzhou. Seven generations back, Bian had been Northern Wei Minister of Personnel. Upright and high-principled, he studied hard, wrote well, and earned his jinshi degree. He served as sheriff of Shangdang, then surveillance censor, then Attendant of the Phoenix Pavilion. He was famously incorruptible; Empress Wu admired his ability. Zhang Yizhi charged Wei Yuanzhong with treasonous words and named Zhang Yue as witness. As the court hearing neared, Yue panicked. Jing told him, "Honor matters more than your skin—do not ruin an innocent man to save yourself. Even exile for telling the truth would leave you fragrant in history. If they threaten your life, I will petition at the gate and face death at your side." Moved, Yue testified honestly, and Yuanzhong was spared.
19
璟後遷左台御史中丞，會飛書告張昌宗引相工觀吉凶者，璟請窮治，後曰：「易之等已自言於朕。」 璟曰：「謀反無容以首原，請下吏明國法。 易之等貴寵，臣言之且有禍，然激於義，雖死不悔。」 後不懌，姚崇遽傳詔令出，璟曰：「今親奉德音，不煩宰相擅宣王命。」 後意解，許收易之等就獄。 俄詔原之，敕二張詣璟謝，璟不見，曰：「公事公言之，若私見，法無私也。」 顧左右歎曰：「吾悔不先碎豎子首而令亂國經。」 嘗宴朝堂，二張列卿三品，璟階六品，居下坐。 易之諂事璟，虛位揖曰：「公第一人，何下坐？」 璟曰：「才劣品卑，卿謂第一何邪？」 是時朝廷以易之等內寵，不名其官，呼易之「五郎」，昌宗「六郎」。 鄭善果謂璟曰：「公奈何謂五郎為卿？」 璟曰：「以官正當為卿。 君非其家奴，何郎之雲？」 會有喪，告滿入朝，公卿以次謁，通禮意。 易之等後至，促步前，璟舉笏卻揖唯唯。 故積怨，常欲中傷，後知之，得免。 然以數忤旨，詔按獄揚州，璟奏：「按州縣，才監察御史職耳。」 又詔按幽州都督屈突仲翔，辭曰：「御史中丞非大事不出使。 仲翔罪止贓，今使臣往，此必有危臣者。」 既而詔副李嶠使隴、蜀，璟復言：「隴右無變，臣以中丞副李嶠，非朝廷故事。」 終辭。 易之初冀璟出則劾奏誅之，計不行，乃伺璟〗家婚禮，將遣客刺殺之。 有告璟者，璟乘庳車舍他所，刺不得發。 俄二張死，乃免。
Promoted to Left Bureau Censor-in-Chief, he learned that Zhang Changzong had consulted a fortune-teller; he demanded a full inquiry. The Empress replied, "Yizhi has already told me himself." Jing answered, "Rebellion cannot be forgiven for a confession—put them under the law. They are the emperor's favorites; I may be ruined for accusing them, but duty leaves me no retreat, even at the cost of my life." The Empress frowned; Yao Chong rushed out an edict to dismiss him. Jing objected, "I am hearing the Son of Heaven himself—why should a minister announce his will unbidden?" Her mood softened, and she allowed Yizhi and his brother to be jailed. They were quickly forgiven and sent to apologize; Jing refused the audience: "State business belongs in court; private visits have no place in the law." He told his attendants, "I should have broken their necks before they could warp the empire's order. At a palace banquet the Zhang brothers sat among third-rank ministers while Jing, only sixth rank, took the lower seat. Yizhi flattered him, yielding a seat: "You are first among us—why take the lower place?" Jing replied, "My talent is mean and my rank humble—what makes me first? Because the Zhangs were the empress's favorites, officials avoided their titles and called them Fifth Lord and Sixth Lord. Zheng Shanguo protested, "Why do you address the Fifth Lord as 'lord'?" Jing answered, "By rank they are lords—that is the proper form. You are not their servant—why ape their flattery with talk of 'lords'? After mourning leave he returned to court; colleagues visited in order to exchange condolences and civilities. The Zhangs came late, rushing ahead; Jing lifted his ivory tablet, stepped aside, and bowed with perfunctory deference. They hated him for it and plotted his ruin; only the Empress's notice spared him. Repeatedly defying her wishes, he was ordered to Yangzhou to hear cases. He protested, "County investigations are work for a surveillance censor alone." She then sent him to probe Youzhou commissioner Qu Tu Zhongxiang; he refused: "A censor-in-chief leaves the capital only for great matters. His offense is mere bribery; dispatching me now means someone wants me dead on the road." He was then named Li Jiao's deputy to Long and Shu; again he objected: "Longyou is quiet—there is no precedent for a censor-in-chief to serve under Li Jiao." He refused to go. Yizhi had hoped to destroy Jing once he left the capital; foiled, he planned to murder him at his son's wedding. Warned in time, Jing traveled in a humble cart and stayed elsewhere; the killers never struck. When the Zhang brothers fell, the danger passed.
20
神龍初，為吏部侍郎。 中宗嘉其直，令兼諫議大夫、內供奉，仗下與言得失。 遷黃門侍郎。 武三思怙烝寵，數有請於璟。 璟厲答曰：「今復子明辟，王宜以侯就第，安得尚幹朝政，獨不見產、祿事乎？」 後韋月將告三思亂宮掖，三思諷有司論大逆不道，帝詔殊死，璟請付獄按罪，帝怒，岸巾出側門，謂璟曰：「朕謂已誅矣，尚何請？」 璟曰：「人言後私三思，陛下不問即斬之，臣恐有竊議者，請按而後刑。」 帝愈怒。 璟曰：「請先誅臣，不然，終不奉詔。」 帝乃流月將嶺南。 會還京師，詔璟權檢校並州長史，未行，又檢校貝州刺史。 時河北水，歲大饑，三思使斂封租，璟拒不與，故為所擠。 曆杭、相二州，政清毅，吏下無敢犯者。 遷洛州長史。
In the first years of Shenlong he became Vice Minister of Personnel. Zhongzong admired his bluntness, made him Remonstrance Grandee and inner attendant, and allowed him to debate policy beside the throne. He rose to Vice Minister of the Yellow Gate. Wu Sansi, bloated with the empress dowager's favor, often importuned Jing. Jing rebuked him: "The crown prince rules openly—the prince of Tang should return to his fief; why meddle in government? Have you forgotten Lü Lu?" When Wei Yuejiang accused Sansi of corrupting the palace women, Sansi had him charged with treason. Zhongzong ordered summary execution. Jing demanded trial first. The emperor, furious, strode out a side door bareheaded: "I meant him dead already—why argue?" Jing said, "The court whispers that the empress protects Sansi; killing without trial will look like favoritism—investigate, then punish." The emperor raged the more. Jing said, "Kill me first, or I will not obey." Zhongzong banished Yuejiang to Lingnan instead. Recalled to Chang'an, he was named acting Bingzhou prefect, then acting Beizhou prefect before he could leave. Floods and famine ravaged Hebei; Sansi tried to seize the sealed grain rents; Jing refused, and Sansi had him pushed aside. As prefect of Hang and Xiang he ruled with icy integrity; none under him dared misconduct. He became prefect of Luozhou.
21
睿宗立，以吏部尚書、同中書門下三品。 玄宗在東宮，兼右庶子。 先是崔湜、鄭愔典選，為戚近幹奪，至迎用二歲闕，猶不能給，更置比冬選，流品淆並，璟與侍郎李乂、盧從願澄革之，銓總平允。
Under Ruizong he became Minister of Personnel and chancellor with Tong rank. He doubled as Right Vice Guardian when Xuanzong was heir apparent. Cui Shi and Zheng Yin had packed the roster with kin and clients, even adding a winter quota, until ranks were hopelessly tangled. With Li Yi and Lu Congyuan he cleaned the lists and made appointments equitable.
22
太平公主不利東宮，嘗駐輦光範門，伺執政以諷。 璟曰：「太子有大功，宗朝社稷主也，安得異議？」 乃與姚崇白奏出公主諸王于外，帝不能用。 貶楚州刺史，曆兗冀魏三州、河北按察使，進幽州都督，以國子祭酒留守東都，遷雍州長史。
Princess Taiping opposed the crown prince; she once waited at Guangfan Gate to stare down the chancellors. Jing declared, "The heir has earned the throne in waiting—how dare anyone dispute his place?" He and Yao Chong urged the emperor to remove the princess and imperial brothers from court; the emperor would not listen. Demoted to Chuzhou, he governed Yan, Ji, and Wei in turn, inspected Hebei, became Youzhou commissioner, chancellor of the National University while guarding Luoyang, then prefect of Yongzhou.
23
玄宗開元初，以雍州為京兆府，復為尹。 進御史大夫，坐小累為睦州刺史，徙廣州都督。 廣人以竹茅茨屋，多火。 璟教之陶瓦築堵，列邸肆，越俗始知棟宇利而無患災。 召拜刑部尚書。 四年，遷吏部兼侍中。
At the start of Kaiyuan, Yongzhou became Jingzhao Prefecture and he again served as intendant. Promoted to Censor-in-Chief, he suffered a small demerit and was sent to Muzhou, then to Guangzhou as commissioner. Cantonese built hovels of bamboo and straw, and fires were constant. He taught them brick walls and tiled roofs and laid out market streets; the region learned durable housing and fewer calamities. Recalled, he became Minister of Punishments. In year four he became Minister of Personnel and Palace Attendant.
24
帝幸東都，次崤穀，馳道隘，稽擁車騎，帝命黜河南尹李朝隱、知頓使王怡等官。 璟曰：「陛下富春秋，今始巡守，以道不治而罪二臣，繇此相飭，後有受其蔽者。」 帝遽命舍之。 璟謝曰：「陛下向以怒責之，以臣言免之，是過歸於上而恩在下。 姑聽待罪於朝，然後詔還其職，進退得矣。」 帝善之。 累封廣平郡公。 廣人為璟立遺愛頌，璟上言：「頌所以傳德載功也。 臣之治不足紀，廣人以臣當國，故為溢辭，徒成諂諛者。 欲厘正之，請自臣始。」 有詔許停。
Touring the eastern capital, the emperor found the road at Xiaogu choked; he ordered Henan intendant Li Chaoyin and transit commissioner Wang Yi dismissed. Jing warned, "You are young and just began touring—punishing two men for a rough road will teach officials to hide problems from you." The emperor at once revoked the order. Jing added, "Your anger blamed them; my plea saved them—the fault looks yours, the mercy mine. Better let them stand guilty at court, then restore them properly—propriety would be preserved." The emperor agreed. He was enfeoffed as Duke of Guangping. Guangzhou erected a laudatory stele; Jing wrote, "Praise exists to record true merit. I have done little worth praising; they exaggerated because I serve at court—that is mere flattery. Stop it with me first." The emperor allowed the stele to be abandoned.
25
帝嘗命璟與蘇頲制皇子名與公主號，遂差次所封，且詔別擇一美稱及佳邑封上。 璟奏言：「七子均養，詩人所稱。 今若同等別封，或母寵子愛，恐傷跂鳩之平。 昔袁盎引卻慎夫人席，文帝納之，夫人亦不為嫌，以其得長久計也。 臣不敢別封。」 帝歎重其賢。
The emperor had Jing and Su Ting name the princes and princesses, rank their titles, and pick special epithets and rich fiefs for the eldest. Jing argued, "The Book of Odes praises raising seven sons alike. Unequal enfeoffments or a favorite queen's son would upset the dove's fair perch—the Odes' warning against favoritism. Yuan Ang once made Emperor Wen demote Lady Shen's seat; the emperor agreed, and the lady did not resent it, for the sake of lasting peace. I dare not accept separate honors for the eldest." The emperor marveled at his integrity.
26
皇后父王仁籞卒，將葬，用昭成皇后家竇孝諶故事，墳高五丈一尺。 璟等請如著令，帝已然可，明日，復詔如孝諶者。 璟還詔曰：「儉，德之恭； 侈，惡之大也。 僭禮厚葬，前世所誡，故古墓而不墳。 人子於哀迷則未遑以禮自製，故聖人制齊、斬、緦、免，衣衾棺槨，各有度數。 雖有賢者，斷其私懷。 眾皆務奢，獨能以儉，所謂至德要道者。 中宮若謂孝諶逾制，初無非者，一切之令固不足以法。 貞觀時嫁長樂公主，魏徵謂不可加長公主，太宗欣納，而文德皇后降使厚謝。 韋庶人追王其父，擅作，酆陵，而禍不旋踵。 國家知人情無窮，故為制度，不因人以搖動，不變法以愛憎。 比來人間競務靡葬，今以後父重戚，不憂乏用，高塚大寢，不畏無人，百事官給，一朝可就，而區區屢聞者，欲成朝廷之政、中宮之美爾。 儻中宮情不可奪，請准令一品陪陵，墳四丈，差合所宜。」 帝曰：「朕常欲正身紀綱天下，于後容有私邪？ 然人所難言，公等乃能之。」 即可其奏。 又遣使賚彩絹四百匹。
The empress's father Wang Renyue died; the court proposed a tomb as high as Dou Xiaochen's for Empress Zhaocheng—five zhang one chi. Jing cited the statutes; the emperor agreed, then reversed himself to follow Xiaochen's precedent. Jing remonstrated: "Frugality is the crown of virtue; waste is the root of evil. Extravagant tombs broke ritual in every dynasty—hence the ancients buried without barrows. A grieving son cannot always govern himself by ritual; the sages therefore fixed mourning grades from deepest to lightest and set measures for shrouds, coffins, and outer cases. Even the wise must yield private sorrow to prescribed ritual. When everyone pursues display, to stand alone in thrift is the highest virtue and the heart of the Way. If the empress argues that Xiaochen exceeded the rules, that was no fault in itself—and a blanket edict is no proper precedent. At Princess Changle's wedding in the Zhenguan era, Wei Zheng warned against extra honors; Taizong agreed, and Empress Wende sent envoys to thank him warmly. When Empress Wei posthumously crowned her father and presumptuously built the Feng mound, ruin came almost at once. The state knows desire has no limit, so it fixes institutions—neither bent by favoritism nor altered for private love or hate. Lavish funerals have become a contest; as the empress's father you need not fear want—a tall mound, a grand vault, labor and supplies from the state, all done in a day. We press this small point only to uphold public order and the empress's good name. If Your Majesty cannot sway the empress, permit at least a first-rank consort's tomb by the mausoleum—four zhang high, which is near the proper measure." The emperor said, "I mean to discipline myself and the realm—would I afterward allow private bias? Yet what others dread to say, you dared speak plain." He approved the memorial at once. He also sent envoys with four hundred bolts of colored silk as a gift.
27
會日食，帝素服俟變，錄囚多所貸遣，賑恤災患，罷不急之務。 璟曰：「陛下降德音，恤人隱，末宥輕系，惟流、死不免，此古所以慎赦也。 恐議者直以月蝕修刑，日蝕修德，或言分野之變，冀有揣合。 臣以謂君子道長，小人道銷。 止女謁，放讒夫，此所謂修德也。 囹圄不擾，兵甲不瀆，官不苛治，軍不輕進，此所謂修刑也。 陛下常以為念，雖有虧食，將轉而為福，又何患乎？ 且君子恥言浮於行，願勸天以誠，無事空文。」 帝嘉納。 後以開府儀同三司罷政事。
A solar eclipse fell; the emperor wore mourning white, awaited the omen's passage, pardoned many prisoners, aided disaster victims, and set aside nonessential business. Jing said, "Your merciful edict comforts the afflicted and pardons petty offenders—only exile and capital crimes remain—which is why the ancients treated amnesty with care. I fear courtiers will say eclipses demand ritual reform—or match them to provincial portents and call that enough. The gentleman's way should lengthen and the small man's way shorten. Bar palace intrigues and dismiss flatterers—that is true cultivation of virtue. Quiet the jails, keep arms holy, forbid harsh magistrates and rash campaigns—that is true cultivation of punishment. Hold to this and even a bite of heaven's food lost to shadow may become blessing—what is there to fear? A gentleman hates words that outrun deeds—urge sincerity upon heaven, not empty proclamations." The emperor praised and accepted. Later he was made Grand Director of the Palace with ceremonial parity to the Three Excellencies and left the ministry.
28
京兆人權梁山謀逆，敕河南尹王怡馳傳往按。 牢械充滿，久未決，乃命璟為京留守，覆其獄。 初，梁山詭稱婚集，多假貸，吏欲並坐貸人。 璟曰：「婚禮借索大同，而狂謀率然，非所防億。 使知而不假，是與為反。 貸者弗知，何罪之雲？」 平縱數百人。
Quan Liangshan of Jingzhao plotted treason; the court ordered Henan Intendant Wang Yi to investigate by relay post. The jails overflowed and the case dragged on until Jing was named Capital Guardian to retry it. Liangshan had pretended a wedding feast to borrow widely; officials wanted every lender punished with him. Jing said, "Wedding loans are common custom, but his treason was sudden—no one could foresee it. To punish lenders for knowing would imply they should have refused—and that would brand refusal as aiding the rebel. The lenders knew nothing—what crime have they?" He freed several hundred.
29
十二年，東巡泰山，璟復為留守。 帝將發，謂曰：「卿，國元老，別方歷時，宜有嘉謀以遺朕。」 璟因一二極言。 手制答曰：「所進當書之坐右，出入觀省，以誡終身。」 賜賚優渥，進兼吏部尚書。 十七年。 為尚書右丞相，而張說為左丞相，源乾曜為太子少傅，同日拜。 有詔太官設饌，太常奏樂，會百官尚書省東堂。 帝賦三傑詩，自寫以賜。 二十年，請致仕，許之，仍賜全祿。 退居洛。 乘輿東幸，璟謁道左。 詔榮王勞問，別遣使賜藥餌。 二十五年卒，年七十五，贈太尉，諡文貞。
In year twelve the emperor toured Mount Tai eastward; Jing again held the capital. Before departing he said, "You are the state's elder, long away from court—leave me counsel worth keeping." Jing spoke bluntly on one or two points. The emperor wrote back: "I shall copy what you offered at my right hand and read it going and coming, to guide me for life." He received rich rewards and was promoted to concurrent Minister of Personnel. In the seventeenth year. He became Right Chancellor; Zhang Yue became Left Chancellor and Yuan Qianyao Grand Tutor of the Crown Prince—all appointed the same day. The court ordered a state banquet with music and gathered the officials in the east hall of the Ministry. The emperor composed a poem on the three worthies and copied it himself as a gift. In year twenty he asked to retire; the emperor agreed and granted full salary. He withdrew to Luoyang. When the emperor traveled east, Jing met him by the roadside. He ordered Prince Rong to inquire after him and sent medicines by a separate envoy. He died in year twenty-five at seventy-five, was posthumously made Grand Marshal, and honored as Wenzhen.
30
璟風度凝遠，人莫涯其量。 始，自廣州入朝，帝遣內侍楊思勖驛迓之。 未嘗交一言。 思勖自以將軍貴幸，訴之帝，帝益嗟重。 璟為宰相，務清政刑，使官人皆任職。 聖曆後，突厥默啜負其強，數窺邊，侵九姓拔曳固，負勝輕出，為其狙擊斬之，入蕃使郝靈亻傳其首京師。 靈佺自謂還必厚見賞。 璟顧天子方少，恐後幹寵蹈利者誇威武，為國生事，故抑之，逾年，才授右武衛郎將，靈佺恚憤不食死。 張嘉貞後為相，閱堂案，見其危言切議，未嘗不失聲歎息。 六子：升、尚、渾、恕、華、衡。 子升升，太僕少卿。 尚，漢東太守。 子渾渾，與李林甫善，曆諫議大夫、平原太守、御史中丞、東京採訪使。 在平原，暴斂求進，至重取民一年庸、租。 使東畿，薛稷甥女鄭寡而美，渾使南尉楊朝宗聘而己納之，薦朝宗為赤尉。 恕，以都官郎中為劍南採訪判官，數貪縱不法，陰養刺客。 天寶中，渾、恕、尚並以贓敗，渾流高要，恕流海康，尚貶臨海長史。 華、衡亦皆坐貪得罪。 廣德中，渾起為太子諭德。 物議穢薄之，流死江嶺。 昆弟皆荒飲俳嬉，而衡最險悖，廣平之風衰焉。 贊贊曰：姚崇以十事要說天子而後輔政，顧不偉哉，而舊史不傳。 觀開元初皆已施行，信不誣已。 宋璟剛正又過於崇，玄宗素所尊憚，常屈意聽納。 故唐史臣稱崇善應變以成天下之務，璟善守文以持天下之正。 二人道不同，同歸於治，此天所以佐唐使中興也。 嗚呼！ 崇勸天子不求邊功，璟不肯賞邊臣，而天寶之亂，卒蹈其害，可謂先見矣。 然唐三百年，輔弼者不為少，獨前稱房、杜，後稱姚、宋，何哉？ 君臣之遇合，蓋難矣夫！
Jing's manner was remote and grave; none could plumb his depths. When he first came from Guangzhou, the emperor sent the eunuch Yang Sixun by relay to meet him. They never exchanged a word. Sixun, proud of his rank and favor, complained; the emperor valued Jing all the more. As chancellor he cleared law and administration until every officer did his proper work. After the Shengli era Moqi chou of the Turks, counting on strength, raided the frontier and attacked the Bayegu of the Nine Surnames; emboldened by victory he rode out carelessly, was ambushed and killed, and frontier envoy Hao Lingjian brought his head to the capital. Lingqian expected a lavish reward on his return. Jing saw the emperor still young and feared future courtiers would boast of frontier glory and stir trouble—so he held back the reward; only after a year was Lingqian made colonel in the Right Wuwei Guard; embittered, he starved himself to death. When Zhang Jiazhen later became chancellor, he read Jing's memorials of grave warning and always sighed aloud. He had six sons: Sheng, Shang, Hun, Shu, Hua, and Heng. His son Sheng rose to Vice Minister of the Stud. Shang became Administrator of Handong. His son Hun, close to Li Linfu, served as Remonstrating Censor, Administrator of Pingyuan, Vice Censor-in-Chief, and Eastern Capital commissioner. In Pingyuan he extorted for promotion, even taking a double year's corvée and grain tax from the people. As commissioner in the eastern capital he saw Zheng, Xue Ji's widowed niece, famed for her beauty; Hun had southern bailiff Yang Chaozong court her but took her himself, then made Chaozong a bailiff of the red-uniform guard. Shu, as aide to the Sichuan commissioner, repeatedly stole and broke the law and secretly kept assassins. In the Tianbao era Hun, Shu, and Shang were ruined by graft—Hun exiled to Gaoyao, Shu to Haikang, Shang demoted chief of Linhai. Hua and Heng likewise fell for greed. In the Guangde era Hun was recalled as mentor to the crown prince. Public opinion reviled him; he died in exile on the southern rivers. The brothers all drank and caroused with actors; Heng was the worst—the Guangping name withered. The appraiser writes: Yao Chong laid out ten essentials before he took office—magnificent, yet the old histories omit it. By early Kaiyuan his program was already in force—no empty boast. Song Jing was more rigid than Chong; Xuanzong had long revered him and often bent his will to heed him. Hence Tang historians say Chong adapted to finish the work of empire, Jing guarded the statutes to hold its rectitude. Different paths, one peace—Heaven's way of helping Tang to its revival. Alas! Chong warned the emperor against frontier glory; Jing refused to reward border generals—the Tianbao catastrophe fulfilled both warnings: foresight indeed. In three hundred years of Tang, helpers were many—yet only Fang and Du in the early reign, Yao and Song later: why? The meeting of ruler and minister is rare indeed!