Volume 126 Biographies 51: Wei, Lu, Li, Du, Zhang, Han

魏盧李杜張韓

Wei, Lu, Li, Du, Zhang, and Han

魏知古

Wei Zhiyang

魏知古，深州陸澤人。方直有雅才，擢進士第。以著作郎修國史，累遷衛尉少卿，檢校相王府司馬。神龍初，為吏部侍郎，以母喪解。服除，為晉州刺史。睿宗立，以故屬拜黃門侍郎，兼修國史。

Wei Zhiyang came from Luze in Shenzhou. Known for his rectitude and refined ability, he passed the jinshi examination. He served as Academician compiling the dynastic history, then rose through posts including Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Insignia and acting marshal of the Prince of Xiang's establishment. Early in the Shenlong reign he was appointed Vice Minister of Personnel, but resigned when his mother died. After the mourning period he was made prefect of Jinzhou. When Ruizong came to the throne, owing to their prior connection he was named Vice Minister of the Yellow Gate and again charged with revising the dynastic history.

會造金仙、玉真觀，雖盛夏，工程嚴促，知古諫曰：「臣聞『古之君人，必時視人之所勤，人勤於力則功築罕，人勤於財則貢賦少，人勤於食則百事廢』。故曰『不作無益害有益』。又曰『罔咈百姓以從己之欲』。《禮》：『季夏之月，樹木方盛，無有斬伐，不可以興土功。』此皆興化立治、為政養人之本也。今為公主造觀，將以樹功祈福，而地皆百姓所宅，卒然迫逼，令其轉徙，扶老攜幼，剔椽發瓦，呼嗟道路。乖人事，違天時，起無用之作，崇不急之務，群心震搖，眾口藉藉。陛下為人父母，欲何以安之？且國有簡冊，君舉必記，言動之微，可不慎歟！願下明詔，順人欲，除功役，收之桑榆，其失不遠。」不納。復諫曰：「自陛下戡翦兇逆，保定大器，蒼生颙颙，以謂朝有新政。今風教頹替日益甚，府藏空屈，人力勞敝，營作無厓，吏員浸增，諸司試補、員外、檢校官已贏二千，太符之帛為殫，太倉之米不支。臣前請停金仙、玉真，訖亦未止。今前水後旱，五谷不立，繇茲向春，必甚饑饉，陛下欲何方以賑之？又突厥於中國為患自久，其人非可以禮義誠信約也。雖遣使請婚，恐豺狼之心，弱則順伏，強則驕逆，月滿騎肥，乘中國饑虛，講親際會，窺犯亭鄣，復何以防之？」帝嘉其直，以左散騎常侍同中書門下三品。玄宗在春宮，又兼左庶子。

When construction began on the Golden Immortal and Jade True abbeys, the work was driven hard even in midsummer. Zhiyang remonstrated: "I have heard that ancient rulers always watched what kept their people occupied: when the people were worn down by labor, little could be built; when they were drained by wealth, tribute and levies dwindled; when they were consumed by food production, everything else fell into neglect. Hence the saying: do nothing useless that harms what is useful. And it is said: do not deceive and thwart the common people to satisfy your own wishes. The Rites states: "In the last month of summer, when trees are in full leaf, there must be no felling; earthworks must not be undertaken." All of these are the foundations of promoting reform, establishing good government, and nourishing the people through rule. Now abbeys are being built for the princesses to accumulate merit and seek blessings, yet the sites are all homes of common people. They are suddenly driven out and forced to move, the old supported on canes and the young led by the hand, rafters torn away and tiles ripped up, lamenting in the streets. This runs counter to human affairs and violates the season; useless projects are raised and unurgent tasks exalted. Hearts everywhere are shaken, and murmuring fills every mouth. Your Majesty is father and mother to the people — how do you intend to give them peace? Moreover the state keeps records in which every act of the ruler is entered. Can one not be cautious about the slightest word or deed? I beg Your Majesty to issue a clear edict, follow the people's wishes, and halt the labor. If you gather things back even at the day's end, the fault would not be far beyond remedy." His advice was not accepted. He remonstrated again: "Since Your Majesty cut down the violent and rebellious and secured the great vessel of state, the common people have looked up eagerly, believing the court would pursue a new policy. Yet now customs and instruction decay further each day; the treasury stands empty and strained; the people are worn out by labor; construction knows no limit; official posts keep multiplying; trial appointees, supernumeraries, and acting officials in the various offices already exceed two thousand. The silks of the Grand Storehouse are spent, and the rice of the Grand Granary will not last. I previously asked that work on the Golden Immortal and Jade True abbeys be halted, yet it has still not ceased. Now floods have been followed by drought; the five grains will not take; from here until spring famine will surely be severe. By what means does Your Majesty intend to provide relief? Moreover the Turks have long been a scourge to China; their people cannot be restrained by ritual, righteousness, sincerity, and good faith. Even if envoys come seeking marriage, I fear their wolfish nature: when weak they submit, when strong they grow arrogant and defiant. When the moon is full and their horses are fat, they will exploit China's hunger and weakness at the very moment of a marriage alliance, spy out our defenses, and raid the border posts. How then shall we guard against them? The emperor praised his frankness and appointed him Left Regular Attendant of the Scattered Cavalry with concurrent status as a third-rank official of the Secretariat-Chancellery. While Xuanzong was crown prince, Zhiyang also served concurrently as Left Guardian of the Heir.

所薦洹水令呂太一、蒲州司功參軍齊浣、右內率騎曹參軍柳澤、密尉宋遙、左補闕袁暉、右補闕封希顏、伊闕尉陳希烈，後皆有聞於時。

Among those he recommended were Lü Taiyi, magistrate of Huanshui; Qi Huan, recorder of Pu Prefecture; Liu Ze, cavalry aide of the Right Inner Guard; Song Yao, commandant of Mi; Yuan Hui, left remonstrance official; Feng Xiyan, right remonstrance official; and Chen Xilie, magistrate of Yique — all of whom later won renown in their day.

文宗大和二年，求其曾孫處訥，授湘陽尉，與魏徵、裴冕後擢任之。

In the second year of the Dahe era under Emperor Wenzong, his great-grandson Chuna was sought out and appointed assistant magistrate of Xiangyang, promoted in the same manner as the descendants of Wei Zheng and Pei Mian.

盧懷慎

Lu Huaiyong

盧懷慎，滑州人，蓋范陽著姓。祖悊，仕為靈昌令，遂為縣人。懷慎在童草已不凡，父友監察御史韓思彥嘆曰：「此兒器不可量！」及長，第進士，歷監察御史。神龍中，遷侍御史。中宗謁武後上陽宮，後詔帝十日一朝。懷慎諫曰：「昔漢高帝受命，五日一朝太公於櫟陽宮，以起布衣登皇極，子有天下，尊歸於父，故行此耳。今陛下守文繼統，何所取法？況應天去提象才二里所，騎不得成列，車不得方軌，於此屢出，愚人萬有一犯屬車之塵，雖罪之何及。臣愚謂宜遵內朝以奉溫清，無煩出入。」不省。

Lu Huaiyong came from Huazhou and belonged to a distinguished Fanyang clan. His grandfather Ti served as magistrate of Lingchang and settled there as a local man. Even as a child Huaiyong showed unusual promise. His father's friend, Supervising Censor Han Siyan, sighed and said, "This boy's capacity cannot be measured! When he grew up he passed the jinshi examination and served as supervising censor. During the Shenlong era he was promoted to attending censor. When Emperor Zhongzong visited Empress Wu at Shangyang Palace, she ordered him to attend court only once every ten days. Huaiyong remonstrated: "When Emperor Gaozu of Han received the Mandate, he visited the Grand Duke at Liyang Palace every five days. That was because, having risen from commoner to emperor, the son held all under Heaven and honor rightly returned to the father. He acted only for that reason. Your Majesty now guards the written tradition and succeeds to the legitimate line. What precedent do you follow? Moreover Yingtian is only about two li from Tixiang; horsemen cannot form ranks and chariots cannot run abreast. To go out repeatedly on such a road — if some fool should once in ten thousand brush against the imperial train, no punishment afterward could undo the harm. In my humble view Your Majesty should attend the inner court to perform your filial duties and need not trouble yourself with going out. The emperor paid no attention.

遷右御史臺中丞。上疏陳時政曰：

He was promoted to vice censor-in-chief of the Right Censorate. He submitted a memorial on current affairs, saying:

臣聞「善人為邦百年，可以勝殘去殺」。孔子稱：「茍用我者，期月而已，三年有成。」故《書》：「三載考績，三考黜陟幽明。」昔子產相鄭，更法令，布刑書，一年人怨，思殺之，三年人德而歌之。子產，賢者也，其為政尚累年而後成，況常材乎？比州牧、上佐、兩畿令或一二歲，或三五月即遷，曾不論以課最，使未遷者傾耳以聽，企踵以望，冒進亡廉，亦何暇為陛下宣風恤人哉？禮義不能興，戶口益以流，倉庫愈匱，百姓日敞，職為此耳。人知吏之不久，不率其教；吏知遷之不遙，不究其力。俞處爵位，以養資望，雖明主有勤勞天下之誌，然僥幸路啟，上下相蒙，寧盡至公乎？此國病也。賈誼所謂蹠盩，乃小小者耳。此而不革，雖和、緩將不能為。漢宣帝綜核名實，興治致化，黃霸良二千石也，加秩賜金，就旌其能，終不肯遷。故古之為吏，至長子孫。臣請都督、刺史、上佐、畿令任未四考，不得遷。若治有尤異，或加賜車裘祿秩，降使臨問，璽書慰勉，須公卿闕，則擢之以勵能者。其不職或貪暴，免歸田裏，以明賞罰之信。

I have heard that if good men govern the state for a hundred years, they can overcome cruelty and put an end to killing. Confucius said, "If you would indeed employ me, in a full month there would be results; in three years there would be real achievement. Hence the Documents: "After three years examine achievements; after three examinations promote the capable and demote the incompetent." Formerly when Zichan served as chancellor of Zheng, he revised laws and published penal codes. After one year the people resented him and wished to kill him; after three years they cherished his virtue and sang his praise. Zichan was a worthy man, yet his governance still required years before it succeeded. How much more must this be true of ordinary men? Recently prefects, senior aides, and magistrates of the two metropolitan districts are transferred after only one or two years, or even three or five months, without regard to merit ratings. Those not yet transferred strain their ears to listen and stand on tiptoe in hope of promotion. Rushing for advancement destroys integrity. When would they have time to carry out Your Majesty's policies and show compassion to the people? Rites and righteousness cannot be revived; household registers grow ever more unstable; storehouses grow emptier; the common people grow poorer day by day — and the reason lies solely in this. The people know officials will not remain long and do not follow their instruction; officials know promotion is near and do not exhaust their strength. Men are placed in offices merely to build seniority and reputation. Though an enlightened ruler may wish to labor for the realm, once the path of lucky advancement opens, superiors and subordinates deceive one another. How can perfect fairness be achieved? This is a sickness of the state. What Jia Yi called the crimes of Zhi the robber and Dang the rebel are trifles by comparison. If this is not reformed, even the physicians He and Huan could not cure it. Emperor Xuan of Han examined names against realities, promoted good government, and brought about reform. Huang Ba was an excellent prefect: he was given added rank and bestowed gold, and his ability was honored on the spot, yet he was never willing to accept transfer. Therefore in antiquity men who served as officials often held office long enough for sons and grandsons to succeed them. I ask that military commissioners, prefects, senior aides, and metropolitan magistrates who have not completed four merit examinations not be transferred. If governance is exceptionally outstanding, add gifts of carriage, fur robes, salary, and rank, send envoys to inquire in person, or issue sealed writings of encouragement. When a vacancy among high ministers occurs, promote such men to encourage the capable. Those who are incompetent or greedy and violent should be dismissed to return to their fields, so that the credibility of rewards and punishments may be made clear.

昔唐、虞稽古，建官惟百。夏、商官倍，亦克用軿。此省官也。故曰「官不必備，惟其才」，「無曠庶官，天工人其代之。」此擇人也。今京諸司員外官數十倍，近古未有。謂不必備，則為有餘，求其代工，乃多不厘務，而奉稟之費，歲巨億萬，徙竭府藏，豈致治意哉」今民力敞極，河、渭廣漕，不給京師，公私耗損，邊隅未靜。儻炎暵成沴，租稅減入，疆場有警，賑救無年，何以濟之？「毋輕人事，惟艱；毋安闕位，惟危。」此慎微也。原員外之官，皆一時良幹，擢以才不申其用，尊以名不任其力，自昔用人，豈其然歟？臣請才堪牧宰上佐，並以遷授，使宣力四方，責以治狀。有老病若不任職者，一廢省之，使賢不肖確然殊貫，此切務也。

In antiquity Tang and Yu looked back to the past and established only a hundred offices. Under Xia and Shang the number of offices doubled, yet the state could still employ them effectively. This is what it means to reduce offices. Hence the saying, "Offices need not all be filled — only their talent," and "Let no office stand vacant; Heaven's work, men will take it up." This is what it means to select men. Today supernumerary officials in the capital offices number ten times the norm — nothing like this has been seen in recent antiquity. If offices need not all be filled, then there are surplus men; yet when one seeks them to take on work, many do not manage affairs at all, while salaries and rations cost tens of millions each year and vainly drain the treasury. Is this the intent of good government?" Today the people's strength is utterly exhausted; the broad transport on the Yellow and Wei cannot supply the capital; public and private resources are depleted; and the border regions are not yet calm. If heat and drought become calamity, tax revenues fall, the frontier is alarmed, and there is no surplus year for relief — how shall we cope? "Do not slight human affairs — only difficulty; do not rest secure in vacant posts — only peril. This is what it means to be cautious in small matters. Originally supernumerary posts were held by outstanding men of the day, promoted for talent yet not given scope to use it, honored by name yet not entrusted with real responsibility. Has employment of men ever been thus from antiquity? I ask that men capable of serving as prefects or senior aides be appointed by transfer, sent to exert themselves in the four quarters, and held accountable by their records of governance. Those who are old or ill and unfit for office should all be dismissed, so that the worthy and unworthy are clearly distinguished. This is an urgent task.

夫冒於寵賂，侮於鰥寡，為政之蠹也。竊見內外官有賕餉狼藉，劓剝蒸人，雖坐流黜，俄而遷復，還為牧宰，任以江、淮、嶺、磧，粗示懲貶，內懷自棄，徇貨掊貲，訖無悛心。明主之於萬物，平分而無偏施，以罪吏牧遐方，是謂惠奸而遺遠。遠州陬邑，何負聖化，而獨受其惡政乎？邊僥之地，夷夏雜處，憑險恃遠易擾而難安；官非其才，則黎庶流亡，起為盜賊。由此言之，不可用凡才，況猾吏乎？臣請以贓論廢者，削跡不數十年，不賜收齒。《書》曰「旌別淑慝」，即其誼也。

To be reckless in seeking favor and bribes and to mistreat widows and orphans are the vermin of good government. I have seen inner and outer officials who take bribes freely and flay the common people. Though sentenced to exile and dismissal, they are soon transferred back and again made prefects, assigned to the Yangtze, Huai, mountain ranges, and deserts — only nominally punished, yet inwardly resigned to their fate, pursuing profit and squeezing wealth, never repenting to the end. An enlightened ruler treats all things equally without partial favor. To send criminal officials to govern distant regions is to favor the wicked and abandon the remote. What have distant prefectures and remote districts done to deserve sage rule, that they alone should suffer such evil government? In border and remote regions barbarians and Chinese live mixed together; relying on rugged terrain and distance, they are easily disturbed and hard to pacify; if officials lack the right talent, the common people flee and rise as bandits. From this it follows that ordinary talent cannot be used there — how much less crafty officials? I ask that those dismissed on charges of corruption be barred from office for decades and not be restored. The Documents says, "Mark and distinguish the good from the evil" — that is the principle.

疏奏，不報。

The memorial was submitted, but no response was given.

懷慎清儉不營產，服器無金玉文綺之飾，雖貴而妻子猶寒饑，所得祿賜，於故人親戚無所計惜，隨散輒盡。赴東都掌選，奉身之具，止一布囊。既屬疾，宋璟、盧從願候之，見敞簀單藉，門不施箔。會風雨至，舉席自障。日晏設食，蒸豆兩器、菜數杯而已。臨別，執二人手曰：「上求治切，然享國久，稍倦於勤，將有憸人乘間而進矣。公第誌之！」及治喪，家無留儲。帝時將幸東都，四門博士張星上言：「懷慎忠清，以直道始終，不加優錫，無以勸善。」乃下制賜其家物百段，米粟二百斛。帝後還京，因校獵、杜間，望懷慎家，環堵庳陋，家人若有所營者，馳使問焉，還白懷慎大祥，帝即以縑帛賜之，為罷獵。經其墓，碑表未立，停蹕臨視，泫然流涕，詔官為立碑，令中書侍郎蘇颋為之文，帝自書。

Huaiyong was pure and frugal and did not accumulate property. His clothing and utensils bore no gold, jade, brocade, or figured silk. Though he held high rank, his wife and children still knew cold and hunger. Whatever salary and gifts he received he gave freely to old friends and kin, dispersing it as soon as it came. When he went to the Eastern Capital to oversee official selection, his personal belongings amounted to only one cloth sack. When he fell ill, Song Jing and Lu Congyuan visited him and found only bare mats and a single mat, with no bamboo screen on the door. When wind and rain came, he lifted a mat to shield himself. At day's end he served food — only two dishes of steamed beans and a few cups of vegetables. As they parted he took their hands and said, "The sovereign earnestly seeks good government, yet having ruled long he grows somewhat weary of diligence. Crafty men will seize the opportunity and advance. You gentlemen must bear this in mind! When his funeral was arranged, the household had nothing left in store. The emperor was about to visit the Eastern Capital when Zhang Xing, Doctor of the Four Gates, submitted a memorial: "Huaiyong was loyal and pure and followed the straight path to the end. If he is not given special rewards, there will be no way to encourage goodness. An edict was then issued granting his household a hundred lengths of goods and two hundred hu of grain. Later, when the emperor returned to the capital, during a hunt in the Du district he looked toward Huaiyong's house. The walls were low and shabby, and the family seemed busy with some task. He sent a messenger at once to inquire. The reply came that Huaiyong was observing the second year of mourning. The emperor immediately bestowed silk and cloth and called off the hunt. Passing his tomb, he saw that no stele had yet been erected. He halted the imperial carriage to look upon it, tears streaming down his face, and ordered officials to erect a stele. He commanded Vice Minister of the Secretariat Su Ting to compose the inscription, which the emperor wrote in his own hand.

子奐、弈。

His sons were Huan and Yi.

奐，早修整，為吏有清白稱。歷御史中丞，出為陜州刺史。開元二十四年，帝西還，次陜，嘉其美政，題贊於聽事曰：「專城之重，分陜之雄，亦既利物，內存匪躬，斯為國寶，不墜家風。」尋召為兵部侍郎。天寶初，為南海太守。南海兼水陸都會，物產瑰怪，前守劉巨鱗、彭杲皆以贓敗，故以奐代之。汙吏斂手，中人之市舶者亦不敢幹其法，遠俗為安。時謂自開元後四十年，治廣有清節者，宋璟、李朝隱、奐三人而已。終尚書右丞。弈見《忠義傳》。

Huan was well ordered from youth and as an official earned a reputation for integrity. He served as censor-in-chief and was then appointed prefect of Shaanzhou. In the twenty-fourth year of Kaiyuan (736), when the emperor returned west and halted at Shaan, he praised Huan's excellent administration and inscribed a commendation in the provincial hall of audience: "The grave responsibility of governing a city on one's own, the proud station of the Shaan divide—you have already brought benefit to the people; in your heart you hold selfless devotion to duty. Such a man is a national treasure and preserves his family's honor. Shortly afterward he was summoned to court and appointed vice minister of the Ministry of War. At the beginning of the Tianbao era, he was appointed prefect of Nanhai. Nanhai was a great entrepôt by land and sea, rich in exotic goods. The previous prefects, Liu Julin and Peng Gao, had both been brought down by bribery, so Huan was sent to replace them. Corrupt officials kept their hands to themselves, and even the brokers who handled maritime trade dared not circumvent his regulations; the distant region settled into peace. People said that in the forty years since Kaiyuan, only three men who governed Guangzhou had maintained spotless integrity: Song Jing, Li Chaoyin, and Huan. He ended his career as right vice director of the Department of State Affairs. Yi is discussed in the Biographies of the Loyal and Righteous.

李元纮

Li Yuanhong

李元纮，字大綱，其先滑州人，後世占京兆萬年，本姓丙氏。曾祖粲，仕隋為屯衛大將軍，煬帝使督京師之西二十四郡盜賊，善撫循，能得士心。高祖與之厚，及兵入關，以眾歸，授宗正卿、應國公，賜姓李。後為左監門大將軍，以其老，聽乘馬按視宮禁。年八十餘卒，謚曰明。祖寬，高宗時為太常卿、隴西公。父道廣，武後時為汴州刺史，有善政。突厥、契丹寇河北，議發河南兵擊之，百姓震擾，道廣悉心撫定，人無離散。遷殿中監、同鳳閣鸞臺平章事，封金城侯。卒，贈秦州都督，謚曰成。

Li Yuanhong, courtesy name Dagang, came from a family originally of Huazhou that later settled in Wannian in the Jingzhao region; their original surname had been Bing. His great-grandfather Can served the Sui as general of the garrison guard. Emperor Yang put him in charge of suppressing banditry in the twenty-four commanderies west of the capital. He was adept at winning people over and commanded the loyalty of local leaders. Gaozu was on close terms with him. When the Tang army entered the Pass, Can submitted with his followers and was appointed director of the imperial clan court and Duke of Ying, and was granted the surname Li. He later served as general of the Left Gate Guard. Because of his advanced age, he was allowed to ride horseback while inspecting the palace precincts. He died in his eighties; his posthumous title was Ming. His grandfather Kuan served under Gaozong as minister of ceremonies and Duke of Longxi. His father Daoguang served under Empress Wu as prefect of Bianzhou and governed with notable benevolence. When the Turks and Khitan raided Hebei, the court debated sending troops from Henan to repel them, and the populace was thrown into alarm. Daoguang worked tirelessly to calm the people, and none fled or scattered. He was promoted to director of the Palace Secretariat and concurrent associate director of the Phoenix Pavilion and Phoenix Terrace, and was enfeoffed as Marquis of Jincheng. He died and was posthumously appointed military commissioner of Qinzhou; his posthumous title was Cheng.

元纮，早修謹，仕為雍州司戶參軍。時太平公主勢震天下，百司順望風指，嘗與民競碾硙，元纮還之民。長史竇懷貞大驚，趣改之，元纮大署判後曰：「南山可移，判不可搖也。」改好畤令，遷潤州司馬，以辦治得名。開元初，為萬年令，賦役稱平，擢京兆少尹。詔決三輔渠，時王、主、權家皆旁渠立硙，瀦堨爭利，元纮敕吏盡毀之，分溉渠下田，民賴其恩。三遷吏部侍郎。會戶部楊玚、白知慎坐支調失宜，貶刺史，帝求可代者，公卿多薦元纮。帝欲擢為尚書，宰相以資薄，乃為戶部侍郎。條陳利害及政得失，帝才之，謂可丞輔，賜衣一稱、絹二百匹。明年，遂拜中書侍郎、同中書門下平章事，封清水縣男。

Yuanhong was disciplined and conscientious from youth and entered service as registrar of the revenue section in Yongzhou. At that time Princess Taiping's power overshadowed the realm, and every office looked to her for direction. When she seized water mills and grinding stones from commoners, Yuanhong restored them to their owners. The chief administrator Dou Huaizhen was alarmed and rushed to reverse the ruling. Yuanhong wrote in bold characters at the end of the judgment: "The southern mountains may be moved, but this ruling shall not be altered. He was transferred to magistrate of Haochi, then promoted to administrator of Runzhou, where he won renown for efficient administration. At the beginning of Kaiyuan he served as magistrate of Wannian, where taxes and corvée labor were judged equitable, and he was promoted to vice director of the capital prefecture. When an edict ordered the canals of the Three Assistants region cleared, princes, princesses, and powerful families had all built mills and dams along the waterways to monopolize the profits. Yuanhong ordered these structures demolished and the water redirected to irrigate the fields below; the people benefited greatly from his action. After three promotions he rose to vice minister of the Ministry of Personnel. When the ministers of revenue Yang Chang and Bai Zhizhen were demoted to prefects for mismanaging fiscal allocations, the emperor sought a replacement, and many senior officials recommended Yuanhong. The emperor wished to promote him to director of a ministry, but the chief minister argued that his seniority was insufficient, and so he was appointed vice minister of revenue instead. He submitted detailed memorials on fiscal policy and the strengths and weaknesses of administration. The emperor recognized his ability, declared him fit for the chancellorship, and granted him a suit of robes and two hundred bolts of silk. The following year he was appointed vice director of the Secretariat and concurrent associate director of the Secretariat and Chancellery, and was enfeoffed as Baron of Qingshui County.

元纮當國，務峻涯檢，抑奔競，誇進者憚之。五月五日，宴武成殿，賜群臣襲衣，特以紫服、金魚錫元纮及蕭嵩，群臣無與比。是時，廢京司職田，議者欲置屯田。元纮曰：「軍國不同，中外異制，若人閑無役，地棄不墾，以閑手耕棄地，省饋運，實軍糧，於是有屯田，其為益尚矣。今百官所廢職田不一縣，弗可聚也；百姓私田皆力自耕，不可取也。若置屯，即當公私相易，調發丁夫。調役則業廢於家，免庸則賦闕於國，內地為屯，古未有也。恐得不補失，徒為煩費。」遂止。初，左庶子吳兢為史官，撰《唐書》及《春秋》，未成，以喪解，後上書請畢其功，詔許就集賢院成書；張說致仕，詔在家修史。元纮因言：「國史記人君善惡、王政損益，褒貶所系，前聖尤重。今國大典，分散不一，且太宗別置史館禁中，所以秘嚴之也。請勒說以書就館，參會撰錄。」詔可。

While Yuanhong held power, he enforced strict standards, curbed the scramble for office, and those who flaunted their connections for promotion feared him. On the fifth day of the fifth month the court held a banquet at Wucheng Hall and granted robes to the ministers. Yuanhong and Xiao Song alone received purple robes and gold fish insignia—honors unmatched by any other minister present. At that time the official salary fields of the capital bureaucracy had been abolished, and some officials proposed establishing garrison-agriculture colonies instead. Yuanhong said: "Military and civil administration follow different principles, and the inner and outer realms operate under different systems. Where the populace has no corvée burdens and land lies fallow, it makes sense to put idle labor to work on abandoned fields, cut transport costs, and fill military granaries—that is the purpose of garrison-agriculture colonies, and the benefit can be considerable. But the official fields now being abolished do not together amount to even one county—they cannot simply be consolidated. The common people's private fields are all worked by their own labor and cannot be seized. If garrison colonies were established here, public and private land would have to be exchanged and corvée laborers conscripted. Conscription would disrupt household livelihoods; exemptions from hired-service payments would leave the treasury short. Establishing garrison colonies in the heartland—nothing like this exists in precedent. I fear the gains would not offset the losses and the scheme would only create needless expense and trouble. The proposal was dropped. Earlier, Wu Jing, left censor and historiographer, had begun compiling the Book of Tang and a Spring and Autumn chronicle but left the work unfinished when he resigned to observe mourning. He later petitioned to complete it, and the emperor permitted him to finish the project at the Academy of Scholarly Worthies. When Zhang Yue retired from office, an edict authorized him to continue editing history from his home. Yuanhong then said: "The national history records the virtues and failings of rulers and the gains and losses of royal governance. Praise and blame hang upon it, and the sages of old held it in the highest regard. Today our great historical records are scattered and disorganized. Taizong established a separate History Office within the palace precisely to keep the work confidential and secure. I ask that Zhang Yue be ordered to bring his manuscripts to the History Office and join the collective compilation. The emperor approved.

後與杜暹不協，數辨爭帝前，帝不懌，皆罷之，以元纮為曹州刺史，徙蒲州，引疾去。後以戶部尚書致仕，復起為太子詹事。卒，贈太子少傅，謚曰文忠。

Later Yuanhong fell out with Du Xian, and the two repeatedly quarreled before the emperor. Displeased, the emperor dismissed them both. Yuanhong was appointed prefect of Caozhou, then transferred to Puzhou, where he resigned citing illness. He later retired as minister of revenue but was recalled to serve as grand mentor of the heir apparent. He died and was posthumously appointed junior tutor of the heir apparent; his posthumous title was Wenzhong.

元纮再世宰相，有清節，其當國累年，未嘗改治第宅，僮馬敝弱，得封物赒給親族。宋璟嘗嘆曰：「李公引宋遙之美，黜劉晃之貪，為國相，家無留儲，雖季文子之德，何以加之！」

Yuanhong came from a family that had produced chancellors for two generations and was known for his integrity. Throughout his years in power he never renovated or expanded his residence; his servants and horses were shabby. What he received from his enfeoffment he gave away to support his relatives. Song Jing once sighed and said: "Lord Li elevated the worthy Song Yao and removed the greedy Liu Huang. As chief minister he kept nothing in store at home—even the virtue of Ji Wenzi could hardly surpass his!"

杜暹，濮州濮陽人。父承誌，武後時為監察御史。懷州刺史李文柬為人所告，詔承誌推驗，無實。文柬，宗室近屬也，卒得罪，承誌貶為方義令，遷天官員外郎。見羅織獄興，移疾去，卒於家。

Du Xian was a native of Puyang in Puzhou. His father Chengzhi served under Empress Wu as supervising censor. Li Wenjian, prefect of Huaizhou, was denounced by an accuser. An edict ordered Chengzhi to investigate, and he found no basis for the charge. Wenjian was a close kinsman of the imperial clan and was ultimately punished anyway. Chengzhi was demoted to magistrate of Fangyi, then transferred to outside director in the Ministry of Personnel. When Luo Ji's wave of fabricated prosecutions began, he resigned on grounds of illness and died at home.

自高祖至暹，五世同居。暹尤恭謹，事繼母孝。擢明經第，補婺州參軍，秩滿歸，吏以紙萬番贐之，暹為受百番，眾嘆曰：「昔清吏受一大錢，何異哉？」為鄭尉，復以清節顯。華州司馬楊孚，公挺人也，每咨重暹。會孚遷大理正，暹適以累當坐，孚曰：「使若人得罪，眾安勸乎？」以狀言執政，繇是擢為大理評事。

From the time of Gaozu down to Xian, five generations of the family lived together under one roof. Xian was especially respectful and dutiful and served his stepmother with filial devotion. He passed the Mingjing examination and was appointed staff member in Wuzhou. When his term ended and he departed, the clerks offered him ten thousand sheets of paper as a parting gift. Xian accepted only one hundred. Onlookers marveled: "The incorrupt official of old accepted but a single large coin—is this not the same spirit? As assistant magistrate of Zheng, he again won distinction for his integrity. Yang Fu, administrator of Huazhou, was a man of upright character who always sought Xian's counsel and held him in high regard. When Fu was promoted to senior judge of the Court of Judicial Review, Xian happened to face accumulated charges that would normally warrant punishment. Fu said: "If a man like this were punished, what encouragement would that offer the rest? He submitted a memorial to the chief ministers making this argument, and Xian was thereupon promoted to judicial reviewer in the Court of Judicial Review.

開元四年，以監察御史覆屯磧西。會安西副都護郭虔瓘與西突厥可汗阿史那獻、鎮守使劉遐慶更相訟，詔暹即按。入突騎施帳，究索左驗。虜以金遺暹，暹固辭，左右曰：「公使絕域，不可失戎心。」乃受焉，陰埋幕下。已出境，乃移文畀取之。突厥大驚，度磧追，不及，去。遷給事中，以母喪解。會安西都護張孝嵩遷太原尹，或言暹往使安西，虜伏其清，今猶慕思，乃奪服拜黃門侍郎兼安西副大都護。明年，於闐王尉遲朒約突厥諸國叛，暹覺其謀，發兵討斬之，支黨悉誅，更立君長，於闐遂安。以功加光祿大夫。守邊四年，撫戎練士，能自勤勵，為夷夏所樂。

In the fourth year of Kaiyuan he served as supervising censor inspecting garrison-agriculture colonies west of the desert. When Vice Protector-General of Anxi Guo Qianjin, the Western Turk qaghan Ashina Xian, and garrison commissioner Liu Xiaqing brought counter-accusations against one another, an edict ordered Du Xian to investigate on the spot. He entered the tents of the Turgesh and exhaustively gathered evidence from both sides. The tribesmen offered gold to Xian, but he firmly refused. His attendants urged him: "My lord, you have been sent to a distant frontier—you cannot afford to alienate these tribes. He therefore accepted the gift but secretly buried it beneath the tent. Once he had crossed the border, he sent an official notice requesting that the gold be dug up and returned. The Turks were astonished. They crossed the desert in pursuit but could not overtake him and turned back. He was promoted to supervising secretary but resigned to observe mourning for his mother. When Protector-General of Anxi Zhang Xiaosong was transferred to grand governor of Taiyuan, some argued that because Xian had previously served in Anxi and the tribes still respected his integrity and yearned for his return, he should be recalled from mourning and appointed vice director of the Yellow Gate and concurrent vice protector-general of Anxi. The following year King Yuchi Ou of Khotan plotted rebellion with several Turkic states. Xian uncovered the conspiracy, sent troops to attack and execute him, wiped out his followers, installed a new ruler, and Khotan was pacified. For this achievement he was granted the additional title of grand master of splendid happiness. He guarded the frontier for four years, pacifying the tribes and drilling the troops with unremitting diligence, and was beloved by both barbarian and Chinese alike.

十四年，召同中書門下平章事，遣中使往迎。謁見，賜絹二百、馬一匹、第一區。與李元纮輕重不得，罷為荊州都督長史，歷魏州刺史、太原尹。帝幸北都，進戶部尚書，許扈蹕。還，復東幸，以暹為京留守。暹率當番衛士繕三宮城，浚池，督役不少懈。帝聞嘉之，數賜書褒勞，進禮部尚書，封魏縣侯。

In the fourteenth year he was summoned to serve as concurrent associate director of the Secretariat and Chancellery, and an imperial envoy was dispatched to escort him to court. Upon audience he was granted two hundred bolts of silk, one horse, and a first-rank residence. Unable to reconcile his standing with Li Yuanhong's in the chancellorship, he was removed and appointed chief administrator of the Jingzhou military commission, then served successively as prefect of Weizhou and grand governor of Taiyuan. When the emperor visited the Northern Capital, Xian was promoted to minister of revenue and permitted to accompany the imperial procession. On the return journey the emperor traveled east again and appointed Xian capital guardian. Xian led the rotating palace guards in repairing the walls of the three palaces and dredging the moats, supervising the work without the slightest slackening. When the emperor learned of this he repeatedly sent letters of commendation, promoted Xian to minister of rites, and enfeoffed him as Marquis of Wei County.

二十八年卒，贈尚書右丞相，遣使護喪，禁中出絹三百匹賜之，太常謚曰貞肅。右司員外郎劉同升等以暹行忠孝，謚有未盡，博士裴總謂暹往以墨衰受命安西，雖勤勞於國，不得盡孝。其子列訴，帝更敕有司考定，卒謚貞孝。

In the twenty-eighth year he died. He was posthumously appointed right vice director of the Department of State Affairs; an envoy was sent to escort the funeral procession, and three hundred bolts of silk were granted from the palace. The Ministry of Ceremonies proposed the posthumous title Zhensu. Liu Tongsheng, outside director of the right bureau, and others argued that because Xian's conduct had been both loyal and filial, the posthumous title did not do him full justice. Doctor Pei Zong countered that Xian had once accepted appointment to Anxi while still in unhemmed ink-dyed mourning garb—though he had toiled for the state, he had not fully fulfilled his filial obligations. His sons submitted a formal appeal. The emperor ordered the officials to reconsider, and the posthumous title was ultimately fixed as Zhenxiao.

暹友愛，撫異母弟昱甚厚。其為人少學術，故當朝議論，時時失淺薄。然能以公清勤約自將，亹為之，自弱冠誓不通親友獻遺，以終身。既卒，尚書省及故吏致賻，其子孝友一不受，以行暹素誌雲。

Xian was warm and affectionate by nature and treated his younger half-brother Yu with great generosity. He had little scholarly training, and in court debates his remarks sometimes lacked depth. Yet he held himself to public service, integrity, diligence, and frugality with unwavering discipline. From his youth he vowed never to accept gifts from friends or relatives, and he kept that vow to the end of his life. After his death the Department of State Affairs and his former subordinates sent funeral gifts, but his son Xiaoyou refused every one, honoring Xian's lifelong vow.

暹族子鴻漸。

Xian's clansman Hongjian.

鴻漸字之巽。父鵬舉，與盧藏用隱白鹿山，以母疾，與崔沔同授醫蘭陵蕭亮，遂窮其術。歷右拾遺。玄宗東行河，因遊畋，上賦以風。終安州刺史。

Hongjian's courtesy name was Zhixun. His father Pengju lived in seclusion on Bailu Mountain with Lu Zangyong. When his mother fell ill, he and Cui Mian studied medicine under Xiao Liang of Lanling and mastered the art thoroughly. He served as right reminder at court. When Emperor Xuanzong traveled east along the Yellow River and went hunting for sport, the emperor composed a fu poem to admonish him. He ended his career as prefect of Anzhou.

鴻漸第進士，解褐延王府參軍，安思順表為朔方判官。祿山亂，皇太子按軍平涼，未知所適，議出蕭關趣豐安。鴻漸與六城水運使魏少遊、節度判官崔漪、支度判官盧簡金、關內鹽池判官李涵謀曰：「胡羯亂常，二京覆沒，太子治兵平涼，然散地難恃也。今朔方制勝之會，若奉迎太子，西詔河、隴，北結回紇，回紇固與國，收其勁騎，與大兵合，鼓而南，雪社稷之恥，不亦易乎！」即具上兵馬招輯之勢，且錄軍資、器械、儲廥凡最，使涵詣平涼見太子，太子大悅。會裴冕至自河西，亦勸之朔方。而鴻漸與漪至白草頓迎謁，說曰：「朔方天下勁兵，靈州用武地。今回紇請和，吐蕃結附，天下列城堅守，以待王命。縱為賊據，日夜望官軍，以圖收復。殿下治兵長驅，逆胡不足滅也。」太子喜曰：「靈武我之關中，卿乃吾蕭何也。」

Hongjian passed the jinshi examination and upon entering service became a staff member in the household of the Prince of Yan. An Sishun recommended him as aide to the Shuofang military commission. When Lushan rebelled, the crown prince mustered troops at Pingliang but did not know which direction to take; some proposed marching out through Xiaoguan toward Feng'an. Hongjian, together with Wei Shaoyou, commissioner of the Six Cities water transport; Cui Yi, military commission aide; Lu Jianjin, supply aide; and Li Han, Guannei salt pond aide, counseled: "The barbarian tribes have risen in rebellion and both capitals have fallen. The crown prince is gathering troops at Pingliang, but this open country offers no secure footing. Shuofang is now the strategic ground where victory can be won. If we welcome the crown prince there, send proclamations west to He and Long, and ally with the Uyghurs to the north—the Uyghurs are already firm allies of the dynasty—we could gather their fierce cavalry, join them with our main force, and march south with drums beating to avenge the realm's disgrace. Would that not be the easier path? They immediately submitted a detailed report on troop strength, horses, and the prospects for recruitment and consolidation, along with a full inventory of military supplies, weapons, and stored provisions, and dispatched Li Han to Pingliang to present it to the crown prince. The crown prince was greatly pleased. Pei Mian had just arrived from Hexi and added his voice to those urging the crown prince toward Shuofang. Hongjian and Cui Yi went out to Baicaodun to meet the crown prince and spoke to him: "Shuofang holds the empire's finest soldiers, and Lingzhou is ground made for war. The Uyghurs now seek peace, and Tibet has allied itself with the court. Cities across the land stand firm in their garrisons, waiting only for imperial orders. Even where rebels hold sway, the people watch day and night for the imperial armies, longing for restoration. If Your Highness marshals your forces and presses forward without halt, these rebellious invaders will scarcely survive your onslaught. The crown prince replied in delight: "Lingwu will be my Guanzhong, and you are my Xiao He."

久之，乃召鴻漸為尚書右丞、太常卿，充禮儀使。泰、建二陵制度皆鴻漸綜正，以優，封衛國公。又建言：「《周官》：『兇荒殺禮。』今承大亂，民人夷殘，其婚葬鹵簿，非於國有大功及二等以上親皆不許給。」詔可。

Some time later Hongjian was summoned to serve as vice minister of the right in the Department of State Affairs and minister of imperial sacrifices, with the added duty of commissioner of ritual ceremonies. Hongjian oversaw and set in order the ritual arrangements for the Tai and Jian imperial tombs. In recognition of his excellence, he was enfeoffed as Duke of Weiguo. He also submitted a memorial: "The Offices of Zhou says, 'In times of famine and calamity, rites should be curtailed. We inherit a realm torn by great upheaval, and the people lie in ruin. I propose that ceremonial escorts for weddings and funerals be granted only to those who have rendered outstanding service to the state, or to relatives within the second degree of mourning. The emperor approved the memorial.

代宗廣德二年，以兵部侍郎同中書門下平章事。尋進中書侍郎。崔旰殺郭英軿據成都，邛州牙將柏貞節、滬州牙將楊子琳、劍州牙將李昌膋以兵討旰，蜀、劍大亂。命鴻漸以宰相兼成都尹、山南西道劍南東川副元帥、劍南西川節度副大使往鎮撫之。鴻漸性畏怯，無它遠略，而晚節溺浮圖道，畏殺戮。及逾劍門，懲艾張獻誠敗，且憚旰雄武，先許以不死。既見，禮遇之，不敢加譙責，反委以政，日與從事杜亞、楊炎縱酒高會，因薦旰為成都尹，而授貞節邛州刺史，子琳滬州刺史，各罷兵。乃請入朝，許之。及見帝，盛言旰威略可任，宜為留後。獻寶器五床、羅錦十五床，麝臍五石。復輔政。議者疾其長亂。進門下侍郎。大歷三年，兼東都留守、河南淮西山南東道副元帥，辭疾不行。又讓山南、劍南副元帥，聽之。四年，疾甚，辭宰相，罷三日卒，年六十一，贈太尉，謚曰文憲。

In the second year of the Guangde era under Emperor Daizong, he was appointed vice minister of war and grand councilor with concurrent authority in the Secretariat and Chancellery. He was soon promoted to vice minister of the Secretariat. Cui Kan killed Guo Yingpi and seized Chengdu. Bo Zhenjie, a garrison officer of Qiongzhou; Yang Zilin of Luzhou; and Li Changliao of Jianzhou each raised troops against him, plunging Shu and the sword passes into chaos. Hongjian was ordered to serve simultaneously as chancellor, prefect of Chengdu, deputy commander of the Southwestern Circuit and Eastern Chuan in Jiannan, and deputy military commissioner of Western Chuan in Jiannan, and sent to restore order. Hongjian was by nature timid and lacking in broader strategic vision. In his later years he became deeply devoted to Buddhism and shrank from bloodshed. After crossing Sword Gate Pass, shaken by Zhang Xiancheng's defeat and intimidated by Cui Kan's martial reputation, he first pledged that Kan would not be executed. When they met he treated Cui Kan with full courtesy, never daring to rebuke him, and instead handed over the reins of government. Day after day he caroused with his staff officers Du Ya and Yang Yan. He then recommended Cui Kan as prefect of Chengdu, appointed Bo Zhenjie prefect of Qiongzhou and Yang Zilin prefect of Luzhou, and had each of the rival commanders stand down their forces. He then requested leave to return to court, and the request was granted. When he appeared before the emperor, he spoke at length of Cui Kan's military talent and declared him fit to serve as regional military governor. He presented five sets of precious vessels, fifteen sets of brocaded silks, and five shi of musk. He resumed his role in governing the realm. Critics condemned him for prolonging the chaos. He was promoted to vice minister of the Chancellery. In the third year of the Dali era he was also named eastern capital garrison commander and deputy commander of Henan, Huai West, and the Eastern Circuit of the Southwestern Mountains, but pleaded illness and declined to take up the posts. He also relinquished his deputy command over the Southwestern Mountains and Jiannan circuits, and the court allowed it. In the fourth year, gravely ill, he resigned from the chancellorship and died three days later at the age of sixty-one. He was posthumously appointed grand marshal and given the posthumous title Wendian, "Cultivated and Lawful."

鴻漸自蜀還，食千僧，以為有報，搢紳效之。病甚，令僧剔項發，遺命依浮圖葬，不為封樹。

When Hongjian returned from Shu, he feasted a thousand monks, believing the act would bring karmic reward, and officials throughout the court followed his example. Near death he had monks shave his head, and left instructions to be buried in the Buddhist manner, without a mound or planted trees.

張九齡

Zhang Jiuling

張九齡，字子壽，韶州曲江人。七歲知屬文，十三以書幹廣州刺史王方慶，方慶嘆曰：「是必致遠。」會張說謫嶺南，一見厚遇之。居父喪，哀毀，庭中木連理。擢進士，始調校書郎，以道侔伊呂科策高第，為左拾遺。時玄宗即位，未郊見，九齡建言：

Zhang Jiuling, courtesy name Zishou, was a native of Qujiang in Shaozhou. At seven he could already compose polished prose. At thirteen he sent a letter to Wang Fangqing, prefect of Guangzhou, who exclaimed, "This boy is destined for great things. When Zhang Yue was demoted to the south, he met Jiuling and immediately took a strong liking to him. During mourning for his father his grief was so consuming that trees in the courtyard fused together at the trunk — a prodigy of filial devotion. After passing the jinshi examination he was first assigned as a proofreader. He scored at the top of the special "Paths Equal to Yi and Lü" examination and was appointed left reminder. Emperor Xuanzong had recently taken the throne but had not yet performed the suburban sacrifice to Heaven. Jiuling submitted a memorial:

天，百神之君，王者所由受命也。自古繼統之主，必有郊配，蓋敬天命，報所受也。不以德澤未洽，年谷未登，而闕其禮。昔者周公郊祀後稷以配天，謂成王幼沖，周公居攝，猶用其禮，明不可廢也。漢丞相匡衡曰：「帝王之事，莫重乎郊祀。」董仲舒亦言：「不郊而祭山川，失祭之序，逆於禮，故《春秋》非之。」臣謂衡、仲舒古之知禮。皆以郊之祭所宜先也。陛下紹休聖緒，於今五載，而未行大報，考之於經，義或未通。今百谷嘉生，鳥獸鹹若，夷狄內附，兵革用弭，乃怠於事天，恐不可以訓。願以迎日之至，升紫壇，陳采席，定天位，則聖典無遺矣。

Heaven is sovereign over all the spirits; it is through Heaven that a ruler receives the mandate to rule. From antiquity every ruler who inherited the throne has performed the suburban rites, honoring Heaven's mandate and acknowledging the charge Heaven has conferred. One must not omit these rites simply because benevolent rule has not yet permeated every corner of the realm, or because the harvest has not yet been plentiful. In antiquity the Duke of Zhou sacrificed to Houji at the suburban altar to accompany Heaven. Even when King Cheng was still a child and the duke ruled as regent, he upheld these rites — proof that they must never be set aside. The Han chancellor Kuang Heng said, "Of all a ruler's duties, none outweighs the suburban sacrifice. Dong Zhongshu likewise argued that offering sacrifices to mountains and rivers without first performing the suburban rite violates the proper order of worship and offends ritual propriety — which is why the Spring and Autumn Annals condemns the practice. In my view, Heng and Zhongshu were among antiquity's true masters of ritual. Both understood that the suburban sacrifice must come first. Your Majesty has inherited a sacred line of succession, yet five years have passed without performing the great responsive sacrifice to Heaven. Measured against the classics, this may fall short of what is proper. The hundred grains flourish, birds and beasts thrive, distant peoples submit, and arms lie still — yet we neglect our duty to Heaven. I fear this sets a poor example for the realm. I ask that on the day of the winter solstice Your Majesty ascend the purple altar, lay out the ceremonial mats, and take your ordained place before Heaven — so that no element of the sage rites be left unperformed.

又言：

He further argued:

乖政之氣，發為水旱。天道雖遠，其應甚邇。昔東海枉殺孝婦，天旱久之。一吏不明，匹婦非命，則天昭其冤。況六合元元之眾，縣命於縣令，宅生於刺史，陛下所與共治，尤親於人者乎！若非其任，水旱之繇，豈唯一婦而已。今刺史，京輔雄望之郡，猶少擇之，江、淮、隴、蜀、三河大府之外，稍非其人。繇京官出者，或身有累，或政無狀，用牧守之任。為斥逐之地。或因附會以忝高位，及勢衰，謂之不稱京職，出以為州。武夫、流外，積資而得，不計於才。刺史乃爾，縣令尚可言哉？氓庶，國家之本，務本之職，乃為好進者所輕，承弊之民，遭不肖所擾，聖化從此銷郁，繇不選親人以成其敝也。古者刺史入為三公，郎官出宰百里。今朝廷士入而不出，其於計私，甚自得也。京師衣冠所聚，身名所出，從容附會，不勤而成，是大利在於內，而不在於外也。智能之士，欲利之心，安肯復出為刺史、縣令哉？國家賴智能以治，而常無親人者，陛下不革以法故也。臣愚謂欲治之本，莫若重守令，守令既重，則能者可行。宜遂科定其資：凡不歷都督、刺史，雖有高第，不得任侍郎、列卿；不歷縣令，雖有善政，不得任臺郎、給、舍；都督、守、令雖遠者，使無十年任外。如不為此而救其失，恐天下猶未治也。

When governance goes awry, its corruption takes the form of flood and drought. Heaven's Way may seem distant, but its response is swift and close at hand. Long ago in Donghai a filial woman was unjustly executed, and drought followed for a long season. When a single magistrate errs in judgment and one innocent woman dies, Heaven itself reveals the wrong. How much more so for the countless common people of the realm, whose lives depend on county magistrates and whose livelihood rests with prefects — the very officials with whom Your Majesty shares the work of governance and who stand closest to the people! When unfit men hold these posts, the source of flood and drought is scarcely confined to a single wronged woman. Even for prefects of the capital region and other prestigious commands, selection remains lax. Beyond the Yangzi, Huai, Long, Shu, and the three Yellow River circuits, many posts are held by unsuitable men. Men dispatched from the capital include some burdened by personal scandals and others with no record of competent administration, yet they are assigned to prefectural and garrison commands. Provincial office has become a dumping ground for the cast aside. Others claw their way to high rank through factional maneuvering; when their influence fades they are declared unfit for capital service and packed off to a prefecture. Soldiers and men from irregular clerical backgrounds accumulate seniority until they win appointment, with no regard for actual ability. If this is the state of prefectural appointment, what hope is there for county magistrates? The common people are the foundation of the state, yet the offices devoted to serving them are treated with contempt by the ambitious. The afflicted populace suffers under unworthy magistrates, and imperial virtue withers — all because close contact with the people is no longer valued in selection. In antiquity prefects rose to become one of the Three Dukes, and palace officers went out to govern counties. Today court officials enter service and never leave the capital; in calculating their private advantage they find this arrangement entirely satisfactory. The capital is where officials gather and reputations are made. Through leisurely networking and facile alliances one can advance without exertion. The real rewards lie inside the capital walls, not beyond them. Able and ambitious men, bent on advancement, will scarcely volunteer to serve again as prefects or magistrates in the provinces. The state depends on capable men for good governance, yet we perpetually lack officials who truly know the people — because Your Majesty has not reformed the system by statute. I humbly submit that the foundation of good governance lies in elevating the status of prefects and magistrates. Once those offices carry real weight, able men will step forward to fill them. Statutes should be enacted at once: no one who has not served as a regional commander or prefect may hold a vice-ministerial post or head a ministry, regardless of examination rank; no one who has not served as a county magistrate may hold a post as a palace secretary, draft reviewer, or attendant — however distinguished his record; Even for the most distant commanderies and counties, no one should reach high office without at least ten years of service outside the capital. Unless we act on this, I fear the realm will never be truly well governed.

又古之選士，惟取稱職，是以士修素行，而不為僥幸，奸偽自止，流品不雜。今天下不必治於上古，而事務日倍於前，誠以不正其本而設巧於末也。所謂末者，吏部條章，舉贏千百。刀筆之人，溺於文墨；巧史猾徒，緣奸而奮。臣以謂始造簿書，備遺忘耳，今反求精於案牘，而忽於人才，是所謂遺劍中流，契丹以記者也。凡稱吏部能者，則曰自尉與主簿，繇主簿與丞，此執文而知官次者也，乃不論其賢不肖，豈不謬哉！夫吏部尚書、侍郎，以賢而授者也，豈不能知人？如知之難，拔十得五，斯可矣。今膠以格條，據資配職，為官擇人，初無此意，故時人有平配之誚，官曹無得賢之實。

In antiquity officials were chosen solely on fitness for office. Scholars therefore cultivated genuine virtue and did not chase fortune; deceit ceased on its own and ranks stayed pure. Our realm need not match the governability of high antiquity, yet the burden of administration grows daily — precisely because we neglect the root and apply clever fixes only at the margins. These marginal fixes are the Ministry of Personnel's regulations, which now run to thousands upon thousands of clauses. Clerks drown in paperwork; while cunning scribes and unscrupulous manipulators exploit the system to advance themselves. Records were originally kept merely as aides-mémoire. Now we demand perfection in paperwork while neglecting human talent — like the man who dropped his sword in the river and marked the spot on his boat's rail, thinking he could recover it later. Those who praise the Ministry's competence speak of orderly promotion from aide and chief clerk to assistant magistrate — promoting by paperwork and rank alone, with no regard for merit. Can anything be more absurd? The minister and vice ministers of the Ministry of Personnel are appointed for their discernment — are they incapable of judging men? Even if judging talent is difficult, selecting five worthy men from ten candidates would be accomplishment enough. Today appointments are frozen by rigid regulations and matched to seniority alone. The original intent — choosing the right man for each office — has been lost. People mock this as "level assignment," and the bureaus gain no genuinely capable officials.

臣謂選部之法，敝於不變。今若刺史、縣令精核其人，則管內歲當選者，使考才行，可入流品，然後送臺，又加擇焉，以所用眾寡為州縣殿最，則州縣慎所舉，可官之才多，吏部因其成，無庸人之繁矣。今歲選乃萬計，京師米物為耗，豈多士哉？蓋冒濫抵此爾。方以一詩一判，定其是非，適使賢人遺逸，此明代之闕政也。天下雖廣，朝廷雖眾，必使毀譽相亂，聽受不明，事則已矣。如知其賢能，各有品第，每一官缺，不以次用之，豈不可乎？如諸司要官，以下等叨進，是議無高卑，唯得與不爾。故清議不立，而名節不修，善士守誌而後時，中人進求而易操也。朝廷能以令名進人，士亦以修名獲利，利之出，眾之趨也。不如此，則小者得於茍求，一變而至阿私；大者許以分義，再變而成朋黨矣。故於用人不可不第其高下，高下有次，則不可以妄幹，天下之士必刻意修飾，而刑政自清，此興衰之大端也。

I submit that the Selection Bureau's methods have grown obsolete through inflexibility. If prefects and magistrates were charged with rigorously assessing local candidates each year, testing their ability and character before sending qualified men to the capital for final review, and if prefectures and counties were ranked according to how many capable officials they produced, local authorities would take recommendations seriously. Talent worthy of office would multiply, and the Ministry of Personnel could build on work already done, without the present tangle of unsuitable appointees. Annual selection now draws tens of thousands to the capital, depleting the city's grain and goods. Are these truly so many worthy men? In truth they are mostly impostors and mediocrities who have slipped through. Yet appointment still hinges on a single poem and a single legal judgment. Worthy men are passed over — a glaring flaw in an otherwise enlightened age. For all the breadth of the realm and the size of the court, we allow reputation and slander to become hopelessly confused. With no clear basis for judgment, selection becomes arbitrary — and that is where the matter ends. If we truly knew each man's ability and assigned clear rank to each, then when a post fell vacant we could appoint by merit rather than seniority — would that not be better? When men of inferior rank push into key posts across the ministries, debate over suitability collapses into a simple question of who gets the job and who does not. Pure discourse ceases to matter, and integrity goes unrewarded. Good men hold to their principles and are passed over; mediocre men chase advancement and readily abandon their standards. If the court promoted men on the strength of genuine reputation, scholars would cultivate reputation to advance — and where profit lies, the multitude will follow. Without this, petty men win advancement through shameless maneuvering, and the first step toward cronyism is taken; while greater men trade on sham principle, and the second step leads straight to factional cliques. In appointing officials we cannot fail to rank men by ability. When ranks are clear and ordered, unqualified men cannot force their way in. Scholars everywhere will cultivate themselves deliberately, law and governance will naturally improve — and this is the decisive hinge between a dynasty's rise and decline.

俄遷左補闕。九齡自才鑒，吏部試拔萃與舉者，常與右拾遺趙冬曦考次，號稱詳平。改司勛員外郎。時張說為宰相，親重之，與通譜系，常曰：「後出詞人之冠也。」遷中書舍人內供奉，封曲江男，進中書舍人。會帝封泰山，說多引兩省錄事主書及所親攝官升山，超階至五品。九齡當草詔，謂說曰：「官爵者，天下公器，先德望，後勞舊。今登封告成，千載之絕典，而清流隔於殊恩，胥史乃濫章韨，恐制出，四方失望。方進草，尚可以改，公宜審計。」說曰：「事已決矣，悠悠之言不足慮。」既而果得謗。御史中丞宇文融方事田法，有所關奏，說輒建議違之。融積不平，九齡為言，說不聽。俄為融等痛詆，幾不免，九齡亦改太常少卿，出為冀州刺史。以母不肯去鄉里，故表換洪州都督。徙桂州，兼嶺南按察選補使。

He was soon promoted to left supplementation censor. Jiuling had a keen eye for talent. When grading candidates for the Ministry of Personnel's "Outstanding Selection" examination, he often worked alongside Right Reminder Zhao Dongxi; their judgments were renowned for thoroughness and fairness. He was transferred to outer gentleman of the Bureau of Merit Records. Zhang Yue was then serving as chancellor and held Jiuling in high regard; they were connected through shared clan ties. Zhang often declared, "He stands at the head of the younger generation of writers. He was appointed secretariat drafting officer with inner-attendant status, enfeoffed as Baron of Qujiang, and promoted to full secretariat drafting officer. When the emperor performed the feng sacrifice at Mount Tai, Zhang Yue arranged for numerous record clerks from both secretariats and his own protégés holding temporary posts to join the ascent, promoting them by leaps to the fifth rank. While drafting an edict, Jiuling said to Zhang Yue: "Offices and ranks belong to the realm, not to private favor. Virtue and standing must come first; only then merit and long service. The Feng and Shan rites have just been completed — a once-in-a-millennium ceremony — yet men of pure reputation are passed over for special favors while clerks and petty officials receive insignia indiscriminately. Once this edict goes out, the realm will be deeply disappointed. The draft has not yet been submitted — it can still be revised. Your Excellency should weigh this carefully. Yue replied: "The matter is settled. Idle gossip is not worth heeding." Before long he did indeed become the target of slander. Censor-in-chief Yuwen Rong was then pushing his field-tax reforms and submitting related memorials. Whenever he did, Yue would propose countermeasures. Rong's resentment mounted. Jiuling pleaded on his behalf, but Yue would not listen. Soon Yue was savagely attacked by Rong and his allies and nearly destroyed. Jiuling was transferred to vice minister of ceremonies and sent out as prefect of Jizhou. Because his mother would not leave their home district, he petitioned to be reassigned as military commissioner of Hongzhou instead. He was moved to Guizhou, concurrently serving as Lingnan commissioner for inspection and official selection.

始說知集賢院，嘗薦九齡可備顧問。說卒，天子思其言，召為秘書少監、集賢院學士，知院事。會賜渤海詔，而書命無足為者，乃召九齡為之，被詔輒成。遷工部侍郎，知制誥。數乞歸養，詔不許，以其弟九臯、九章為嶺南刺史，歲時聽給驛省家。遷中書侍郎，以母喪解，毀不勝哀，有紫芝產坐側，白鳩、白雀巢家樹。是歲，奪哀拜中書侍郎、同中書門下平章事。固辭，不許。明年，遷中書令。始議河南開水屯，兼河南稻田使。上言廢循資格，復置十道采訪使。

When Yue first directed the Academy of Scholarly Worthies, he had recommended Jiuling as a man fit to serve as a court adviser. After Yue died, the emperor remembered his recommendation and summoned Jiuling to serve as vice director of the Secretariat, academician of the Academy of Scholarly Worthies, and director of the academy. When an edict was needed for Bohai and no one in the drafting office was up to the task, Jiuling was summoned to write it. He received the commission and finished it on the spot. He was promoted to vice minister of works and put in charge of drafting edicts. He repeatedly asked leave to return home and care for his mother. The court refused, but appointed his brothers Jiugao and Jiuzhang as prefects in Lingnan and allowed them post horses each year to visit the family. Promoted to vice director of the Secretariat, he resigned when his mother died. His grief was so overwhelming it threatened his life. A purple lingzhi mushroom sprouted beside his seat, and white doves and white magpies nested in the trees at his home. That year, before the mourning period had ended, he was recalled to serve as vice director of the Secretariat and co-director of the Secretariat-Chancellery. He firmly declined; the emperor would not accept his refusal. The following year he was promoted to director of the Secretariat. He first proposed establishing water-colony farms in Henan and concurrently served as commissioner for Henan rice fields. He memorialized the throne to abolish advancement by fixed seniority and restore the ten-circuit investigative commissioners.

李林甫無學術，見九齡文雅，為帝知，內忌之。會范陽節度使張守珪以斬可突幹功，帝欲以為侍中。九齡曰：「宰相代天治物，有其人然後授，不可以賞功。國家之敗，由官邪也。」帝曰：「假其名若何？」對曰：「名器不可假也。有如平東北二虜，陛下何以加之？」遂止。又將以涼州都督牛仙客為尚書，九齡執曰：「不可。尚書，古納言，唐家多用舊相，不然，歷內外貴任，妙有德望者為之。仙客，河、湟一使典耳，使班常伯，天下其謂何？」又欲賜實封，九齡曰：「漢法非有功不封，唐遵漢法，太宗之制也。邊將積谷帛，繕器械，適所職耳。陛下必賞之，金帛可也，獨不宜裂地以封。」帝怒曰：「豈以仙客寒士嫌之邪？卿固素有門閱哉？」九齡頓首曰：「臣荒陬孤生，陛下過聽，以文學用臣。仙客擢胥史，目不知書。韓信，淮陰一壯夫，羞絳、灌等列。陛下必用仙客，臣實恥之。」帝不悅。翌日，林甫進曰：「仙客，宰相材也，乃不堪尚書邪？九齡文吏，拘古義，失大體。」帝由是決用仙客不疑。九齡既戾帝旨，固內懼，恐遂為林甫所危，因帝賜白羽扇，乃獻賦自況，其末曰：「茍效用之得所，雖殺身而何忌？」又曰：「縱秋氣之移奪，終感恩於篋中。」帝雖優答，然卒以尚書右丞相罷政事，而用仙客。自是朝廷士大夫持祿養恩矣。嘗薦長安尉周子諒為監察御史，子諒劾奏仙客，其語援讖書。帝怒，杖子諒於朝堂，流州，死於道。九齡坐舉非其人，貶荊州長史。雖以直道黜，不戚戚嬰望，惟文史自娛，朝廷許其勝流。久之，封始興縣伯，請還展墓，病卒，年六十八，贈荊州大都督，謚曰文獻。

Li Linfu had no scholarly training. Seeing Jiuling's literary refinement and the emperor's esteem for him, he secretly resented him. When Zhang Shougui, military commissioner of Fanyang, won distinction by beheading Ketugan, the emperor wished to appoint him grand counselor. Jiuling said: "The chief minister governs on Heaven's behalf. The post is given only when there is a worthy man — it must not be used to reward military merit. States fall when offices are filled wrongly. The emperor said: "What if we grant him only the title?" He replied: "Titles and insignia must not be lent out. If he pacifies the two barbarian powers of the northeast, how will Your Majesty reward him then?" The appointment was dropped. The emperor next proposed appointing Niu Xianke, governor of Liangzhou, as minister. Jiuling objected: "That cannot be done. The minister is the ancient 'voice that receives words.' The Tang usually appoints former chief ministers; otherwise men who have held weighty posts at court and in the provinces and who truly possess virtue and standing. Xianke is only a frontier commissioner from the He and Huang region. To place such a man among the highest ministers — what would the realm say? The emperor also wished to grant him an actual fief. Jiuling said: "Han law holds that there is no enfeoffment without merit. The Tang follows Han law — this was Taizong's institution. A frontier general who stores grain and cloth and repairs weapons is only doing his duty. If Your Majesty must reward him, gold and silk will suffice. Carving off territory for an enfeoffment alone is inappropriate." The emperor angrily said: "Do you look down on him because Xianke is a man of humble origin? Surely you yourself come from an illustrious lineage?" Jiuling bowed his head and said: "I am a solitary man from a remote corner. Your Majesty overestimated me and employed me for my literary ability. Xianke was promoted from clerk and record-keeper; he cannot even read. Han Xin was only a stalwart from Huaiyin, yet he was ashamed to stand in the same rank as Zhou Bo and Guan Ying. If Your Majesty insists on using Xianke, I would truly be shamed." The emperor was displeased. The next day Linfu came forward and said: "Xianke has the makings of a chief minister — is he unfit even to be minister? Jiuling is a literary clerk, bound by ancient precedent, and misses the larger design. The emperor therefore resolved to employ Xianke without further hesitation. Having already crossed the emperor's wishes, Jiuling was inwardly afraid he might be destroyed by Linfu. When the emperor bestowed a white-feather fan, he submitted a rhapsody presenting himself through it, its closing lines reading: "If only my service finds its proper place, what would I regret though my body were destroyed? And again: "Though autumn's chill may seize and take away, I would still be grateful within the casket." Though the emperor answered warmly, in the end Jiuling was removed from office as right director of the Department of State Affairs and Xianke was appointed in his place. From then on, court officials held their salaries and cultivated favor. He had once recommended Zhou Ziliang, warden of Chang'an, as investigating censor. Ziliang impeached Xianke, citing prognostic texts in his language. The emperor in anger had Ziliang beaten in the Hall of Audience, banished him to Zhou, and he died on the road. Jiuling was punished for recommending an unworthy man and demoted to senior adjutant of Jingzhou. Though removed for following the straight path, he was neither downcast nor grasping after hope. He amused himself with history and literature alone, and the court acknowledged him among the leading men of his age. After some time he was enfeoffed as baron of Shixing County. He requested leave to return and tend his family's graves, fell ill, and died at sixty-eight. He was posthumously appointed grand governor of Jingzhou, with the posthumous title Wenxian.

九齡體弱，有藉。故事，公卿皆搢笏於帶，而後乘馬。九齡獨常使人持之，因設笏囊，自九齡始。後帝每用人，必曰：「風度能若九齡乎？」初，千秋節，公、王並獻寶監，九齡上「事鑒」十章，號《千秋金鑒錄》，以伸諷諭。與嚴挺之、袁仁敬、梁升卿、盧怡善，世稱其交能終始者。及為相，諤諤有大臣節。當是時，帝在位久，稍怠於政，故九齡議論必極言得失，所推引皆正人。武惠妃謀陷太子瑛，九齡執不可。妃密遣宦奴牛貴兒告之曰：「廢必有興，公為援，宰相可長處。」九齡叱曰：「房幄安有外言哉！」遽奏之，帝為動色，故卒九齡相而太子無患。安祿山初以范陽偏校入奏，氣驕蹇，九齡謂裴光庭曰：「亂幽州者，此胡雛也。」及討奚、契丹敗，張守珪執如京師，九齡署其狀曰：「穰苴出師而誅莊賈，孫武習戰猶戮宮嬪，守珪法行於軍，祿山不容免死。」帝不許，赦之。九齡曰：「祿山狼子野心，有逆相，宜即事誅之，以絕後患。」帝曰：「卿無以王衍知石勒而害忠良。」卒不用。帝後在蜀，思其忠，為泣下，且遣使祭於韶州，厚幣恤其家。開元後，天下稱曰曲江公而不名雲。建中元年，德宗賢其風烈，復贈司徒。

Jiuling's physique was weak and he used a staff. By precedent, high ministers all tucked their court tablets into their belts before mounting their horses. Jiuling alone regularly had someone carry his for him, and so the tablet case was devised — beginning with Jiuling. Thereafter, whenever the emperor considered appointing someone, he would say: "Does his bearing match Jiuling's? Early on, at the Longevity Festival, dukes and princes all presented treasure mirrors. Jiuling submitted ten chapters of "Mirrors of Affairs," titled Records of the Golden Mirrors of Longevity, to extend admonition and counsel. With Yan Tingzhi, Yuan Renjing, Liang Shengqing, and Lu Yi he was on good terms; their age praised them for friendships that lasted to the end. When he became chief minister, he remonstrated forthrightly and showed the bearing of a great minister. At that time the emperor had reigned long and had grown somewhat slack in governance. Jiuling therefore spoke out fully on what was right and wrong, and those he recommended were all upright men. Consort Wu Hui plotted to bring down Crown Prince Ying. Jiuling firmly refused to go along. The consort secretly sent the eunuch Niu Guier to tell him: "If one prince is deposed, another must rise. If you lend your support, the chancellorship can be yours for the long term. Jiuling rebuked him: "How dare private words from the inner chambers reach the outside!" He immediately reported the matter. The emperor's expression changed, and so while Jiuling remained chief minister the crown prince suffered no harm. When An Lushan first came to court from Fanyang as a low-ranking garrison officer, his manner was arrogant and overbearing. Jiuling said to Pei Guangting: "The one who will bring disorder to Youzhou is this barbarian whelp. When the campaign against the Xi and Khitan failed, Zhang Shougui had him bound and sent to the capital. Jiuling endorsed the petition: "When Rangju marched forth he executed Zhuang Jia; when Sun Wu drilled troops he still executed palace women. Shougui has enforced military law in the ranks — Lushan cannot be spared death." The emperor refused and pardoned him. Jiuling said: "Lushan has the heart of a wolf cub — he bears the countenance of rebellion. He should be executed on the spot to forestall future trouble. The emperor said: "Do not, like Wang Yan who knew of Shi Le, harm the loyal and worthy." In the end his advice was not taken. Later, when the emperor was in Shu, he thought of Jiuling's loyalty, wept, and sent an envoy to offer sacrifices at Shaozhou, with generous gifts to comfort his family. After the Kaiyuan era, the realm called him the Duke of Qujiang rather than speak his personal name. In the first year of Jianzhong, Emperor Dezong admired his sterling character and again posthumously appointed him as grand preceptor.

子拯，居父喪，有節行，後為伊闕令。會祿山盜河、洛，陷焉。而終不受偽官。賊平，擢太子贊善大夫。九齡弟九臯，亦有名，終嶺南節度使。其曾孫仲方。

His son Zheng observed mourning for his father with proper integrity and later served as magistrate of Yique. When An Lushan plundered the He and Luo region, the county fell. Yet Zheng never accepted a false appointment. When the rebellion was put down, he was promoted to grand tutor of the crown prince. Jiuling's brother Jiugao was also renowned and ended as military commissioner of Lingnan. His great-grandson was Zhongfang.

仲方，生歧秀，父友高郢見，異之，曰：「是兒必為國器，使吾得位，將振起之。」貞元中，擢進士、宏辭，為集賢校理，以母喪免。會郢拜御史大夫，表為御史。進累倉部員外郎。

Zhongfang was born with unusual promise. When Gao Ying, a friend of his father, saw him, he marveled and said: "This boy will surely become a pillar of state. If I ever attain high office, I will raise him up. In the Zhenyuan era he passed the jinshi and hongci examinations, served as collator in the Academy of Scholarly Worthies, and resigned upon his mother's death. When Gao Ying was appointed censor-in-chief, he recommended Zhongfang as censor. Through successive promotions he rose to vice director of the Granary Section.

會呂溫等以劾奏宰相李吉甫不實，坐斥去，仲方以溫黨，補金州刺史。宦人奪民田，仲方三疏申理，卒與民直。入為度支郎中。吉甫卒，太常謚恭懿，博士尉遲汾清謚敬憲，仲方挾前怨未已，因上議曰：「古之謚，考大節，略細行，善善惡惡，一言而足。按吉甫雖多才多藝，而側媚取容，疊致臺袞，寡信易謀，事無成功。且兵兇器，不可從我始，至以伐罪，則邀必成功。今內有賊輔臣之盜，外有懷毒蠆之臣，師徒暴野，農不得在畝，婦不得在桑，耗賦殫畜，屍僵血流，胔骼成嶽，毒痡之痛，訴天無辜，階禍之發，實始吉甫。」又言：「吉甫平易柔寬，名不配行。請俟蔡平，然後議之。」憲宗方用兵，疾其言醜訐，貶為遂州司馬。稍進河南少尹、鄭州刺史。

When Lü Wen and others were expelled for impeaching Chief Minister Li Jifu on unsubstantiated grounds, Zhongfang, as a member of Wen's faction, was reassigned as prefect of Jinzhou. When eunuchs seized commoners' land, Zhongfang submitted three memorials on the people's behalf and in the end obtained compensation for them. He was recalled to serve as director in the Revenue Section. When Jifu died, the Ministry of Ceremonies proposed the posthumous title Gongyi. The erudite Yuchi Fen proposed Jingxian. Zhongfang, still nursing old resentment, submitted a critique: "Ancient posthumous titles assessed the great moral outline and passed over minor conduct; praising the good and censuring the evil — a single word sufficed. Examining Jifu: though multitalented in many arts, he ingratiated himself through flattery, repeatedly reached the highest office, kept little faith and changed plans easily, and accomplished nothing of success. Moreover arms are an ill-omened instrument — they must not be taken up at my initiative. Yet when war was launched as punishment, he always insisted it would surely succeed. Now within there are thieves among assisting ministers; without, ministers harboring venom like stinging insects. Armies lie wasted in the fields; farmers cannot work the furrows, women cannot tend the mulberry groves. Taxes drain the livestock; corpses stiffen and blood flows; bones and flesh heap like hills. The agony of poisoned wounds cries to Heaven in innocence — the stairway to calamity began with Jifu. He also said: "'Gentle, easy, soft, and lenient' — the name does not match his conduct. I ask that the matter be deferred until Cai is pacified, and only then discussed." Emperor Xianzong was then waging war and took offense at such ugly impeachment. Zhongfang was demoted to adjutant of Suizhou. He was gradually promoted to vice governor of Henan and prefect of Zhengzhou.

敬宗立，李程輔政，引為諫議大夫。帝時詔王播造競渡舟三十艘，度用半歲運費。仲方見延英，論諍堅苦，帝為減三之二。又詔幸華清宮，仲方曰：「萬乘之行，必具葆衛，易則失威重。」不從，猶見慰勞。鄠令崔發以辱黃門系獄，逢赦不見宥。仲方曰：「恩被天下，流昆蟲，而不行禦前乎？」發繇是不死。大和初，出為福建觀察使。召還，進至左散騎常侍。李德裕秉政，以太子賓客分司東都。德裕罷，復拜常侍。

When Emperor Jingzong came to the throne, Li Cheng entered government, and Zhongfang was brought in as remonstrance official. The emperor then ordered Wang Bo to build thirty dragon-boat racing vessels, estimated to consume half a year's transport budget. Zhongfang attended audience in the Yanying Hall and remonstrated with stubborn persistence. The emperor reduced the number by two-thirds. An edict was also issued for an imperial visit to Huaqing Palace. Zhongfang said: "The journey of the ten-thousand-chariot ruler must be fully guarded and escorted; if made too easy, majesty and weight are lost. The emperor did not heed him, but still summoned him and offered words of reassurance. Cui Fa, magistrate of Hu County, had been jailed for insulting a palace eunuch; when a general amnesty was proclaimed, he alone was not forgiven. Zhongfang said, "Imperial grace blankets the realm and falls even on crawling things — yet it cannot reach a man standing before the throne? Thanks to this intervention, Cui Fa was spared execution. Early in the Dahe era he was posted as military commissioner of Fujian. Recalled to court, he rose to Left Regular Attendant of the Loose-Rein Cavalry. While Li Deyu dominated the government, Zhongfang was sidelined as Retired Guest of the Heir Apparent, serving at the Eastern Capital. After Deyu's fall, Zhongfang was restored to Regular Attendant.

李訓之變，大臣或誅或系。翌日，群臣謁宣政，牙闔不啟。群臣錯立朝堂，無史卒贊候，久乃半扉啟，使者傳召仲方曰：「有詔，可京兆尹。」然後門辟，喚仗。於時族夷將相，顱足旁午，仲方皆密使識其屍。俄許收葬，故胔骸不相亂。已而禁軍橫，多撓政，仲方勢笮，不能有所繩劾。宰相鄭覃更以薛元賞代之，出為華州刺史。召入，授秘書監。人頗言覃助德裕，擯仲方不用。覃乃擬丞、郎以聞。文宗曰：「侍郎，朝廷華選。彼牧守無狀，不可得。」但封曲江縣伯。卒，七十二，贈禮部尚書，謚曰成。仲方確正有風節，既駁吉甫謚，世不直其言，卒不至顯。既歿，人多傷之。

In the aftermath of Li Xun's coup attempt, senior ministers were killed or thrown into chains. The following day the ministers came to Xuanzheng Hall for audience, but the gate remained shut. The officials milled about the hall with no attendants to call the roll. Only after a long wait did half the doors swing open; a messenger fetched Zhongfang and announced, "By edict, you are appointed metropolitan governor of Jingzhao. Only then were the gates thrown fully open and the imperial guard summoned. Whole families of generals and chancellors had been exterminated; severed heads and limbs littered the ground. Zhongfang quietly sent agents to identify each corpse. Soon permission came to gather the dead for burial, and because of his records the remains were not confused. Before long the palace guards ran rampant and meddled in civil affairs; Zhongfang's authority was too narrow to restrain or impeach them. Chancellor Zheng Tan had Xue Yuanshang take his place and sent Zhongfang out as governor of Huazhou. He was recalled and made director of the Secretariat. Many held that Zheng Tan, abetting Li Deyu, had blocked Zhongfang from useful appointment. Zheng Tan then drafted a recommendation for Zhongfang as an assistant or bureau director and submitted it. Emperor Wenzong said, "Vice minister is one of the court's finest appointments. That prefect is unfit for such rank — it will not do. Zhongfang received only the nominal title Baron of Qujiang County. He died at seventy-two. The court posthumously made him minister of rites and gave him the posthumous name Cheng, "Accomplished." Zhongfang was sternly upright and possessed real integrity of character. Because he had opposed Li Jifu's posthumous honors, the age never vindicated him, and he never reached high office. After he was gone, many grieved for him.

始，高祖仕隋時，太宗方幼而病，為刻玉像於熒陽佛祠以祈年，久而刓晦，仲方在鄭，敕吏治護，鏤石以聞，傳於時。

Long before, while Gaozu still served the Sui, the future Emperor Taizong lay young and sick; a jade statue was carved at the Buddhist shrine in Yingyang to pray for his life. Years later it had worn dim. When Zhongfang governed at Zhengzhou he ordered it restored, had the deed carved in stone and reported to the throne, and the tale passed into common talk.

韓休，京兆長安人。父大智，洛州司功參軍，其兄大敏，仕武後為鳳閣舍人。梁州都督李行褒為部人告變，詔大敏鞫治。或曰：「行褒諸李近屬，後意欲去之，無列其冤，恐累公。」大敏曰：「豈顧身枉人以死乎？」至則驗出之。後怒，遣御史覆按，卒殺行褒，而大敏賜死於家。

Han Xiu came from Chang'an in the metropolitan region of Jingzhao. His father Dazhi had been adjutant of judicial affairs at Luozhou; his elder brother Damin, under Empress Wu, served as a drafter in the Phoenix Pavilion. Li Xing'ao, military governor of Liangzhou, was denounced for sedition by a subordinate; Damin was ordered to try the case. Someone warned him, "Xing'ao is kin to the Zhao kings of the Li clan, and the empress wants him gone. If you do not record his grievance, I fear you will be dragged down with him. Damin replied, "Would I save my own skin by sending an innocent man to his death?" When he arrived he examined the evidence and cleared the man. The empress later flew into a rage, sent censors to reopen the case, and in the end had Xing'ao executed; Damin was ordered to take his own life at home.

休工文辭，舉賢良。玄宗在東宮，令條對國政，與校書郎趙冬曦並中乙科，擢左補闕，判主爵員外郎。進至禮部侍郎，知制誥。出為虢州刺史。虢於東、西京為近州，乘輿所至，常稅廄芻，休請均賦它郡。中書令張說曰：「免虢而與它州，此守臣為私惠耳。」休復執論，吏白恐忤宰相意，休曰：「刺史幸知民之敝而不救，豈為政哉？雖得罪，所甘心焉。」訖如休請。以母喪解，服除，為工部侍郎，知制誥。遷尚書右丞。侍中裴光庭卒，帝敕蕭嵩舉所以代者，嵩稱休誌行，遂拜黃門侍郎、同中書門下平章事。

Han Xiu excelled at letters and passed the "worthy and good" provincial examination. While Xuanzong was still heir apparent, Han Xiu was told to answer point by point on affairs of state; he and collation secretary Zhao Dongxi both placed in the second class, were promoted to Left Remonstrance Official, and he concurrently served as vice director of the Bureau of Nobility. He advanced to vice minister of rites and took charge of drafting imperial edicts. He was posted out as governor of Guo Prefecture. Guo lay close to both capitals, and wherever the imperial train passed, fodder for the stables was taxed from the prefecture. Han Xiu asked that the levy be spread evenly across neighboring commanderies. Chief Minister Zhang Yue said, "Exempting Guo and dumping the cost on other prefectures — that is a governor buying private goodwill. Han Xiu pressed the point again. A clerk warned that he might anger the chief minister. Han Xiu said, "If a prefect knows the people's distress and will not relieve it, what sort of governance is that? Even if I must offend my superiors, I accept that gladly." In the end the court granted Han Xiu's request. He left office for his mother's mourning; when the period of grief ended he became vice minister of works and again drafted edicts. He was promoted to Right Assistant Director in the Department of State Affairs. When Palace Attendant Pei Guangting died, the emperor told Xiao Song to name a successor. Song praised Han Xiu's integrity, and Han Xiu was made Vice Director of the Yellow Gate and concurrent grand councillor.

休直方不務進趨，既為相，天下翕然宜之。萬年尉李美玉有罪，帝將放嶺南。休曰：「尉小官，犯非大惡。今朝廷有大奸，請得先治。金吾大將軍程伯獻恃恩而貪，室宅輿馬僭法度，臣請先伯獻，後美玉。」帝不許，休固爭曰：「罪細且不容，巨猾乃置不問，陛下不出伯獻，臣不敢奉詔。」帝不能奪。大率堅正類此。初，嵩以休柔易，故薦之。休臨事或折正嵩，嵩不能平。宋璟聞之曰：「不意休能爾，仁者之勇也。」嵩寬博多可，休峭鯁，時政所得失，言之未嘗不盡。帝嘗獵苑中，或大張樂，稍過差，必視左右曰：「韓休知否？」已而疏輒至。嘗引鑒，默不樂。左右曰：「自韓休入朝，陛下無一日歡，何自戚戚，不逐去之？」帝曰：「吾雖瘠，天下肥矣。且蕭嵩每啟事，必順旨，我退而思天下，不安寢。韓休敷陳治道，多訐直，我退而思天下，寢必安。吾用休，社稷計耳。」後以工部尚書罷。遷太子少師，封宜陽縣子。卒，年六十八，贈揚州大都督，謚曰文忠。寶應元年，贈太子太師。

Han Xiu was upright and unbending, with no taste for flattery. Once he became chancellor, the realm broadly approved the choice. Li Meiyu, a warden of Wannian, had broken the law, and the emperor meant to exile him to Lingnan. Han Xiu said, "A county warden is a minor official, and his crime is not a grave one. Yet the court now shelters great villains. I ask that we punish them first. General-in-Chief of the Golden Crowns Cheng Boxian, trusting in imperial favor, is greedy; his house, carriages, and horses violate the statutes. I ask that Cheng Boxian be punished first and Li Meiyu afterward. The emperor refused. Han Xiu argued stubbornly, "A petty crime cannot be tolerated, yet a great rogue goes untouched. Unless Your Majesty removes Cheng Boxian, this minister dare not obey the edict." The emperor could not override him. In general his steadfast integrity took this form. At first Xiao Song had recommended him because he took Han Xiu for mild and tractable. Once in office Han Xiu sometimes openly corrected Song, and Song could not bear it. When Song Jing heard of it he said, "I never thought Han Xiu capable of this — the courage of a humane man. Song was broad and accommodating; Han Xiu was sharp and unyielding. On the rights and wrongs of current policy, he never spoke without saying everything that needed to be said. The emperor sometimes hunted in the park or staged lavish entertainments; if things went a little too far, he would always glance at those beside him and ask, "Does Han Xiu know about this? Before long a memorial from Han Xiu would arrive. Once the emperor gazed into a mirror, silent and unhappy. Those around him said, "Since Han Xiu entered court, Your Majesty has not had a single day of pleasure. Why brood alone? Why not send him away? The emperor said, "Though I grow thin, the realm grows prosperous. Besides, whenever Xiao Song reports on affairs he always agrees with me. When I withdraw and think of the realm, I cannot sleep soundly. Han Xiu lays out the way of governance, often blunt to the point of offense. When I withdraw and think of the realm, I sleep at ease. I keep Han Xiu for the sake of the state." Later he was removed from office as minister of works. He was made Junior Tutor of the Heir Apparent and enfeoffed as Viscount of Yiyang County. He died at sixty-eight. The court posthumously made him Great Military Governor of Yangzhou and gave him the posthumous name Wenzhong, "Cultured and Loyal." In the first year of Baoying he was posthumously made Grand Tutor of the Heir Apparent.

子浩、洽、洪、汯、滉、渾、洄，皆有學尚。

His sons Hao, Qia, Hong, Yin, Huang, Hun, and Hui all cultivated learning and moral refinement.

浩，萬年主簿，坐籍王鉷家貲有隱入，為尹鮮于仲通所劾，流循州。洪為司庫員外郎，與汯皆以累貶。洪後為華州長史。渾，大理司直。安祿山盜京師，皆陷賊，賊逼以官，浩與洪、汯、滉、渾出奔，將走行在，浩、洪、渾及洪四子復為賊禽殺之。洪善與人交，有節義，藉甚於時，見者為流涕。肅宗以大臣子能死難，詔贈浩吏部郎中，洪太常卿，渾太常少卿。汯上元中終諫議大夫。洽，終殿中侍御史。

Hao served as chief clerk of Wannian. When Wang Hong's estate was inventoried he was charged with concealing assets; metropolitan governor Xianyu Zhongtong impeached him and he was exiled to Xunzhou. Hong was vice director of the Bureau of Granaries; he and Yin were both demoted through association with the case. Hong later served as chief administrator of Huazhou. Hun served as judicial inspector in the Court of Judicial Review. When An Lushan seized the capital they all fell into rebel hands; the rebels tried to force offices on them. Hao fled with Hong, Yin, Huang, and Hun, intending to reach the emperor's camp, but Hao, Hong, Hun, and Hong's four sons were captured again by the rebels and killed. Hong was gifted in friendship and possessed integrity and honor; his reputation stood very high in his day, and those who witnessed his death wept. Because the sons of a great minister had died in the calamity, Emperor Suzong posthumously made Hao a bureau director in the Ministry of Personnel, Hong chamberlain for ceremonials, and Hun vice chamberlain for ceremonials. Yin ended his career in the Shangyuan era as remonstrance official. Qia ended his career as a palace censor.

滉，字太沖，以蔭補左威衛騎曹參軍。至德初，避地山南，采訪使李承昭表為通川郡長史，改彭王府諮議參軍。初，汯知制誥，當草王玙詔，無借言，銜之。及當國，滉兄弟皆斥冗官。玙罷，乃擢殿中侍御史，三遷吏部員外郎。性強直，明吏事，蒞南曹五年，簿最詳致。再遷給事中，知兵部選。時盜殺富平令韋當，賊隸北軍，魚朝恩私其兇，奏原死，滉執處，卒伏辜。遷右丞。知吏部選，以戶部侍郎判度支。

Huang, styled Taichong, entered office by inherited privilege as military adjutant of the Left Weibei Guard. Early in the Zhide era he took refuge south of the mountains; Surveillance Commissioner Li Chengshi recommended him as chief administrator of Tongchuan Commandery, and he later became adviser to the Prince of Peng. Earlier, when Yin was drafting edicts, he was to write an edict for Wang Yu but put in no flattering phrases; Wang nursed a grudge. When Wang Yu came to power, Huang and his brothers were all shunted into empty posts. After Wang Yu fell, Huang was promoted to palace censor and, after three further steps, became vice director of the Ministry of Personnel. Forceful and upright by nature, he understood administrative work; he ran the Southern Bureau for five years, and his ledgers were exceptionally thorough. Promoted again to attendant, he took charge of personnel selection in the Ministry of War. At the time a bandit killed Wei Dang, magistrate of Fuping; the killer belonged to the Northern Army. Yu Chao'en shielded the murderer and memorialized to spare his life. Huang insisted on execution, and in the end the man paid with his life. He was promoted to Right Assistant Director. He took charge of personnel selection in the Ministry of Personnel and, as vice minister of revenue, concurrently ran the Bureau of Public Works.

自至德軍興，所在賦稅無藝，帑司給輸乾隱。滉檢制吏下及四方輸將，犯者痛根以法。會歲數稔，兵革少息，故儲積谷帛稍豐實。然覆治案牘，深文鉤剝，人亦咨怨。大歷十二年秋，大雨害稼什八，京兆尹黎幹言狀，滉恐有所蠲貸，固表不實。代宗命御史行視，實損田三萬餘頃。始，渭南令劉藻附滉，言部田無害，御史趙計按驗如藻言，帝又遣御史朱敖覆實，害田三千頃。帝怒曰：「縣令，所以養民，而田損不問，豈恤隱意邪？」貶南浦員外尉，計亦斥為豐州司戶員外參軍。方是時，潦敗河中鹽池，滉奏池產瑞鹽。帝疑，遣諫議大夫蔣鎮廉狀，鎮畏滉，還乃賀帝，且請置祠，詔號寶應靈慶池。

Since the Zhide campaigns began, levies everywhere had no fixed limit, and treasury and transport officials skimmed and concealed receipts. Huang tightened control over subordinates and deliveries from all directions; offenders were ferreted out and punished to the full extent of the law. Several years of good harvests followed, and with warfare largely stilled, stored grain and cloth gradually grew plentiful. Yet because he reopened old files, applied the law with pitiless technicality, and squeezed out every last coin, people complained as well. In autumn of the twelfth year of Dali, heavy rains ruined eight-tenths of the harvest. Metropolitan Governor Li Gan reported the damage. Huang, fearing tax remissions and relief, stubbornly memorialized that the report was false. Emperor Daizong sent censors to inspect on the ground; damaged fields totaled more than thirty thousand qing. At first Liu Zao, magistrate of Weinan, curried favor with Huang and claimed no fields in the commandery were harmed. Censor Zhao Ji investigated and confirmed Liu Zao's account. The emperor then sent Censor Zhu Ao to verify again and found three thousand qing of damaged fields. The emperor grew angry and said, "A county magistrate exists to care for the people — yet when fields are ruined he asks no questions. Is this not an attempt to hide the suffering? Liu Zao was demoted to acting vice-warden of Nanpu, and Zhao Ji was likewise expelled to acting registrar of Fengzhou. At that same time floods wrecked the salt ponds in Hezhong. Huang memorialized that the ponds were yielding auspicious salt. The emperor was skeptical and sent Remonstrance Official Jiang Zhen to inspect the matter. Jiang feared Huang; on his return he congratulated the emperor and also asked that a shrine be established. An edict named the pool the Baoying Spiritual Celebration Pond.

德宗立，惡滉掊刻，徙太常卿。議者不厭，乃出為晉州刺史。未幾，遷浙江東、西觀察使，尋檢校禮部尚書為鎮海軍節度使。綏輯百姓，均租、調，不逾年，境內稱治。帝在奉天，淮、汴震騷，滉訓士卒，分兵戌河南。既狩梁州，又獻縑十萬匹，請以鎮兵三萬助討賊，有詔嘉勞，進檢校尚書右仆射，封南陽郡公。李希烈陷汴州，滉遣裨將王棲耀、李長榮、柏良器以勁卒萬人進討，次睢陽，而賊已攻寧陵，棲耀等破走之，漕路無梗，完靖東南，滉功多。

When Emperor Dezong came to the throne, he took a dislike to Huang's grasping severity and transferred him to the post of Grand Master of Ceremonies. Those who deliberated on policy remained dissatisfied, so he was sent out to serve as prefect of Jinzhou. Before long he was transferred to Intendant of Zhejiang East and West, and soon was made Acting Minister of Rites and military commissioner of Zhenhai. He soothed and settled the people, equalized land tax and corvée levies, and within a year the region was praised as well governed. While the emperor was at Fengtian, the Huai and Bian regions were convulsed with alarm. Huang drilled his troops and dispatched forces to garrison Henan. After the imperial hunt at Liangzhou, he also presented one hundred thousand bolts of silk and offered thirty thousand of his garrison troops to help suppress the rebels. An edict commended and rewarded him; he was promoted to Acting Right Vice Director of the Department of State Affairs and enfeoffed as Duke of Nanyang. When Li Xilie captured Bianzhou, Huang sent assistant generals Wang Qiyao, Li Changrong, and Bai Liangqi with ten thousand crack troops to advance against him. They halted at Suiyang just as the rebels were attacking Ningling; Qiyao and his colleagues routed them. The grain routes were cleared, the southeast was secured, and Huang's contribution was great.

時裏胥有罪，輒殺無貸，人怪之。滉曰：「袁晁本一鞭背史，禽賊有負，聚其類以反，此輩皆鄉縣豪黠，不如殺之，用年少者，惜身保家不為惡。」又以賊非牛酒不嘯結，乃禁屠牛，以絕其謀。婺州屬縣有犯令者，誅及鄰伍，坐死數十百人。又遣官分察境內，罪涉疑似必誅，一判輒數十人，下皆愁怖。

Whenever a village clerk committed an offense, he would have him executed without exception, and people found this strange. Huang said, "Yuan Chao began as a back-whipping clerk; when he captured rebels he nursed grudges and rallied his kind to rebel. These men are all powerful, cunning figures from the counties and districts. Better to kill them and use younger men who cherish their lives, guard their households, and will not turn to evil. He also reasoned that rebels would not gather and plot without beef and wine, so he banned cattle slaughter to cut off their schemes. In a county under Wuzhou someone violated an order, and punishment extended to neighboring households; several dozen to a hundred people were put to death as a result. He also sent officials to inspect the territory in sections; whenever guilt touched even suspicion, execution was certain. A single judgment often meant dozens of deaths, and everyone below him was filled with dread.

聞京都未平，乃閉關梁，禁牛馬出境，築石頭五城，自京口至玉山。毀上元道、佛祠四十區，修撝壁，起建業、抵京峴，樓雉相望。以為朝廷有永嘉南走事，置館第數十於石頭城，穿井皆百尺。命偏將丘涔督役，日數千人，涔虐用其眾，朝令夕辦，先世丘壟皆發夷。造樓艦三千柁，以舟師由海門大閱，至申浦乃還。追李長榮等歸，以親吏盧復為宣州刺史，增營壘，教習長兵，毀鐘鑄軍器。陳少遊在揚州，以甲士三千臨江大閱；滉亦總兵臨金山，與少遊會，以金繒相餉酬。然滉握強兵，遷延不赴難，而調發糧帛以濟朝廷者繦屬，當時實賴之。李晟方屯渭北，滉運米饋之，船置十弩以相警捍，賊不能剽。始，漕船臨江，滉顧僚吏曰：「天子蒙塵，臣下之恥也。」乃自舉一囊，將佐爭負之。

Learning that the capital was not yet pacified, he closed the passes at Liang, forbade cattle and horses to leave the region, and built five stone fortresses from Jingkou to Yushan. He demolished forty Daoist and Buddhist shrines in Shangyuan, repaired the battlements, and raised fortifications from Jianye to Mount Jingxian, with watchtowers and parapets facing one another. Expecting the court might repeat the Yongjia-era flight south, he built several dozen guest mansions in Shitou Fortress, sinking wells a hundred feet deep in each. He ordered acting general Qiu Cen to supervise the work — several thousand men each day. Cen drove the laborers cruelly; orders given in the morning had to be finished by evening, and ancestral tombs of earlier generations were all dug up and leveled. He built three thousand tower ships and held a grand naval review through Haimen, returning only after reaching Shenpu. He recalled Li Changrong and the others, appointed his trusted aide Lu Fu prefect of Xuanzhou, added camps and fortifications, drilled troops in long weapons, and melted down bells to cast arms. Chen Shaoyou was at Yangzhou and held a grand review with three thousand armored troops along the river; Huang also mustered troops at Mount Jin, met with Shaoyou, and they exchanged gifts of gold and silk. Yet though Huang held a strong army and delayed going to the emperor's rescue, the grain and cloth he levied and sent to sustain the court came in an unbroken stream, and the dynasty truly depended on him at the time. Li Sheng was encamped north of the Wei River; Huang shipped grain to supply him, placing ten crossbows on each boat for warning and defense, so rebels could not raid the convoys. At first, when the transport ships reached the river, Huang turned to his staff and said, "When the Son of Heaven is driven into exile, it is the shame of his ministers. Then he himself lifted a sack of grain, and his generals and aides vied to carry it.

右丞元琇判度支也，以關輔旱，請運江南租米西給京師。帝委滉專督之，而琇畏其剛愎難共事，請自江至揚子，滉主之；揚子以北，自主之。滉由是銜琇。會琇以京師錢重貨輕，發江東鹽監院錢四十萬緡入關。滉紿奏「運錢至京師，率費萬致千，不可從。」帝責謂琇，琇曰：「千錢其重與鬥米均，費三百可致。」帝以諭滉，滉執不可。至是，誣劾琇饋米與淄青李納、河中李懷光。帝怒，不復究驗，貶琇雷州司戶參軍。左丞董晉白宰相劉滋、齊映曰：「昨關輔用兵，方蝗旱，琇不增一賦，而軍興皆濟，可謂勞臣。今被謫無名，刑濫人懼，假令權臣逞誌，公胡不請三司鞫之？」滋、映不能用。給事中袁高抗疏申執，滉指為黨與，寢不報。

Right Vice Director Yuan Xiu oversaw the Treasury; because Guanzhong was stricken by drought, he requested that Jiangnan land-tax grain be shipped west to supply the capital. The emperor entrusted Huang exclusively to supervise the transport, but Xiu feared his stubborn arrogance and found him hard to work with, so he requested that Huang take charge from the river to Yangzi; North of Yangzi he would manage himself. From this Huang harbored a grudge against Xiu. When Xiu, because money was scarce and goods dear in the capital, dispatched four hundred thousand strings of cash from the Jiangdong Salt Directorate into the passes, Huang deceived the emperor with a memorial claiming, "Transporting money to the capital costs ten thousand to deliver one thousand — this must not be done. The emperor rebuked Xiu. Xiu replied, "One thousand cash weighs the same as a peck of rice; three hundred strings' worth of expense could deliver it." The emperor relayed this to Huang, but Huang stubbornly insisted it could not be done. At this point he falsely impeached Xiu for supplying grain to Li Na of Ziqing and Li Huai'guang of Hezhong. The emperor grew angry, did not investigate further, and demoted Xiu to registrar of Leizhou. Left Vice Director Dong Jin told chief ministers Liu Zi and Qi Ying, "When Guanzhong was at war amid locusts and drought, Xiu added not a single levy yet all military needs were met — he may truly be called a toiling minister. Now he is banished without cause; punishments run wild and people are afraid. If a powerful minister is indulging his will, why do you not request the Three Offices to investigate? Zi and Ying could not act on it. Supervising Secretary Yuan Gao submitted a remonstrating memorial in Xiu's defense; Huang denounced him as a partisan, and the matter was shelved without response.

劉玄佐不朝，帝密詔滉諷之。及過汴，玄佐素憚滉，修屬吏禮。滉辭不敢當，因結為兄弟，入拜其母，置酒設女樂。酒行，滉曰：「宜早見天子，不可使夫人白首與新婦子孫填宮掖也。」玄佐泣悟。滉以錢二十萬緡為玄佐辦裝，又以綾二十萬犒軍。玄佐入朝，滉薦可任邊事。時兩河罷兵，滉上言：「吐藩盜河、湟久，近歲浸弱，而西近大食，北捍回鶻，東抗南詔，分軍外戰，兵在河、隴者不過五六萬，若朝廷命將，以十萬眾城涼、鄯、洮、渭，各置兵二萬為守禦，臣請以本道財賦饋軍，給三年費，然後營田積粟，且耕且戰，則河、隴之地可翹足而復。」帝善其言，因訪玄佐，玄佐請行。會滉病甚，張延賞奏減州縣冗官，收祿俸，募戰士西討。玄佐慮延賞靳削資儲，辭犬戎未釁，不可輕進，因稱疾。帝遣中人勞問，臥受命。延賞知不可用，乃止。滉尋卒，年六十五，贈太傅，謚曰忠肅。

Liu Xuanzuo was not coming to court; the emperor secretly ordered Huang to admonish him. When Huang passed through Bian, Xuanzuo, who had always feared him, observed the etiquette due a subordinate official. Huang declined, saying he dared not accept such deference, but then they swore brotherhood; he entered to pay respects to Xuanzuo's mother, and a banquet was set with female musicians. As the wine was passed, Huang said, "You should soon see the Son of Heaven. You must not let your lady grow old in white hair while a new consort's sons and grandsons fill the palace halls. Xuanzuo wept and came to his senses. Huang provided two hundred thousand strings of cash for Xuanzuo's travel expenses and two hundred thousand bolts of damask to reward the troops. When Xuanzuo came to court, Huang recommended him as fit for frontier duties. When hostilities in the two He regions had ceased, Huang submitted a memorial: "The Tibetans have long raided He and Huang; in recent years they have gradually weakened, yet to the west they border Great Qin, to the north they hold off the Uyghurs, and to the east they resist Nanzhao. Dividing their armies for external campaigns, troops in He and Long number no more than fifty or sixty thousand. If the court appoints a general with one hundred thousand men to fortify Liang, Shan, Tao, and Wei, posting twenty thousand at each as garrison defense, your subject asks to supply the army from this circuit's revenue and provide three years' expenses. Then establish garrison farms and accumulate grain — farming while fighting — and the He-Long territories can be recovered with ease. The emperor approved his proposal and consulted Xuanzuo, who volunteered to go. Just then Huang fell gravely ill; Zhang Yanshang memorialized to reduce redundant officials in prefectures and counties, collect their salaries, and recruit soldiers for a western campaign. Xuanzuo worried Yanshang would stingily cut stored resources, pleaded that the western barbarians had not yet provoked trouble and advance must not be rash, and therefore pleaded illness. The emperor sent a eunuch to console him, and he accepted orders while abed. Yanshang knew Xuanzuo could not be used and thereupon stopped. Huang soon died at age sixty-five. He was posthumously made Grand Tutor and given the posthumous title Zhongsu ("Loyal and Solemn").

滉雖宰相子，性節儉，衣裘茵衽，十年一易。甚暑不執扇，居處陋薄，取庇風雨。門當列戟，以父時第門不忍壞，乃不請。堂先無挾廡，弟洄稍增補之，滉見即徹去，曰：「先君容焉，吾等奉之，常恐失墜。若摧圮，繕之則已，安敢改作以傷儉德？」居重位，清潔疾惡，不為家人資產。自始仕至將相，乘五馬，無不終櫪下。好鼓琴，書得張旭筆法，畫與宗人幹相埒。嘗自言：「不能定筆，不可論書畫。」以非急務，故自晦，不傳於人。善治《易》、《春秋》，著《通例》及《天文事序議》各一篇。初判度支，李晟以裨將白軍事，滉待之加禮，使其子拜之，厚遺器幣鞍馬。後晟終立大功。滉幼時已有美名，所與遊皆天下豪俊。晚節益苛慘，故論者疑其飾情希進，既得誌，則強肆，蓋自其性雲。子群、臯。

Though Huang was a prime minister's son, he was frugal by nature — fur coats and bedding he replaced only once every ten years. In great heat he never used a fan; his dwelling was shabby and plain, enough only to shelter from wind and rain. His gate ought to have displayed halberds in rank, but he could not bear to alter the gate of his father's house and so did not request the honor. The hall originally had no side galleries; his younger brother Hui had slightly added and repaired them. When Huang saw them he immediately had them removed, saying, "Our late father dwelt there; we preserve that legacy and always fear to lose it. If it collapses, repair it — that is enough. How dare we rebuild and harm the virtue of frugality? Holding high rank, he was scrupulously honest and hated evil; he did not amass property for his family. From first taking office to becoming general and chief minister, he rode five horses — not one failed to die in the stable from overwork. He loved to play the qin; in calligraphy he mastered Zhang Xu's brush method; in painting he was comparable to his clansman Gan. He once said, "Without a steady hand one cannot speak of calligraphy and painting. Because these were not urgent duties, he kept them hidden and did not share them with others. He was skilled in the Book of Changes and the Spring and Autumn Annals, and authored one fascicle each of Tongli ("General Principles") and Tianwen Shixu Yi ("Discussion on the Order of Astronomical Affairs"). When he first oversaw the Treasury, Li Sheng came as an assistant general to report military affairs. Huang treated him with special courtesy, had his son pay respects to him, and generously gifted him vessels, silks, saddles, and horses. Later Sheng ultimately achieved great merit. Huang had already won a fine reputation in youth; those he associated with were all eminent talents under heaven. In later years his harsh cruelty grew worse, so commentators suspected he had cultivated an appearance to win advancement; once he got his wish he became forcibly unbridled — likely this was simply his nature. His sons were Qun and Gao.

群終國子司業。臯字仲聞，資質重厚，有大臣器。由雲陽尉策賢良方正異等，拜右拾遺。累遷考功員外郎。父喪，德宗遣使吊問，俾論譔滉行事，號泣承命，立草數千言以進，帝嘉之。服除，宰相擬考功郎中，帝為加知制誥。遷中書舍人、御史中丞、兵部侍郎，號稱職。俄拜京兆尹。奏署鄭鋒為倉曹參軍。鋒苛斂吏，乃說臯悉索府中雜錢，折糴粟麥三十萬石獻於帝，臯悅之，奏為興平令。貞元十四年，大旱，民請蠲租賦，臯府帑已空，內憂恐，奏不敢實。會中人出入，百姓遮道訴之，事聞，貶撫州員外司馬。未幾，改杭州刺史，入拜尚書右丞。王叔文用事，臯嫉之，謂人曰：「吾不能事新貴。」從弟曄以告叔文，叔文怒，出為鄂嶽蘄沔觀察使。叔文敗，即拜節度，徙鎮海，入為戶部尚書，歷東都留守、忠武軍節度使。大抵以簡儉治，所至有績。召拜吏部尚書，兼太子少傅。莊憲太后崩，充大明宮留守。穆宗以舊傅恩，加檢校尚書右仆射，俄為真。又進左仆射。長慶四年，復為東都留守，卒於道，年七十九，贈太子太保，謚曰貞。

Qun ultimately became Vice Director of the Directorate of Education. Gao, styled Zhongwen, was by nature sober and weighty, with the capacity of a chief minister. From his post as magistrate of Yunyang he was selected through the Examinations for Worthy and Upright with exceptional grade and appointed Right Reminder. He was promoted through successive ranks to assistant director in the Ministry of Personnel. When his father died, Emperor Dezong sent envoys to offer condolences and ordered him to compose a narrative of Huang's conduct. Weeping, he accepted the charge, drafted several thousand words on the spot and submitted them, and the emperor commended him. When mourning ended, the chief ministers proposed him as director of merit examinations; the emperor additionally made him drafter of imperial edicts. He was transferred to Drafting Secretary, Censor-in-Chief, and Vice Minister of War, and was praised as fulfilling his duties. Soon he was appointed Metropolitan Governor. He memorialized to appoint Zheng Feng aide in the granary section. Feng was a harshly extracting official; he persuaded Gao to gather all miscellaneous cash in the prefecture, purchase thirty thousand shi of grain and wheat at reduced price, and present it to the emperor. Gao was pleased and memorialized to make him magistrate of Xingping. In the fourteenth year of Zhenyuan came a great drought; the people requested remission of taxes and levies. The metropolitan treasury was already empty; inwardly anxious and fearful, he memorialized but dared not report the truth. When a eunuch was passing through, the people blocked the road to plead their case; the matter reached the throne and Gao was demoted to acting military aide of Fuzhou. Before long he was transferred to prefect of Hangzhou, then entered court as Right Vice Director of the Department of State Affairs. When Wang Shuwen held power, Gao resented it and told others, "I cannot serve new favorites. His younger cousin Ye reported this to Shuwen; Shuwen grew angry and sent Gao out as Intendant of E-Yue-Qi-Mian. When Shuwen fell, Gao was immediately appointed military commissioner, transferred to Zhenhai, entered court as Minister of Revenue, and served successively as Eastern Capital Regent and military commissioner of Zhongwu. Generally he governed through simplicity and frugality; wherever he went he achieved results. He was summoned and appointed Minister of Personnel, concurrently Junior Tutor to the Heir Apparent. When Empress Dowager Zhuangxian died, he was made Regent of Daming Palace. Emperor Muzong, owing to his old tutorship, added him as Acting Right Vice Director of the Department of State Affairs, soon made substantive. He was further promoted to Left Vice Director. In the fourth year of Changqing he again became Eastern Capital Regent and died on the road at age seventy-nine. He was posthumously made Junior Mentor to the Heir Apparent and given the posthumous title Zhen ("Upright").

臯貌類父，既孤，不復視鑒。生知音律，常曰：「長年後不願聽樂，以門內事多逆知之。」聞鼓琴，至《止息》，嘆曰：「美哉！嵇康之為是曲，其當晉、魏之際乎。其音主商，商為秋，秋者天將搖落肅殺，其歲之晏乎。晉乘金運，商又金聲，此所以知魏方季而晉將代也。緩其商弦，與宮同音，臣奪君之義，知司馬氏之將篡也。王陵、毌丘儉、文欽、諸葛誕繼為揚州都督，鹹有興復之謀，皆為司馬懿父子所殺。康以揚州故廣陵地，陵等皆魏大臣，故名其曲曰《廣陵散》，言魏散亡自廣陵始。『止息』者，晉雖暴興，終止息於此。其哀憤、躁蹙、憯痛、迫脅之音，盡於是矣。永嘉之亂，其兆乎！康避晉、魏之禍，托以鬼神，以俟後世知音雲。」

Gao's appearance resembled his father's; once orphaned he never again looked in a mirror. Born with knowledge of pitch and rhythm, he often said, "In later years I do not wish to listen to music, for many things within the household are foreknown against my will. Hearing the qin played, when it reached "Zhixi" he sighed and said, "How beautiful! Was it when Ji Kang composed this piece that it corresponded to the juncture of Jin and Wei? Its mode is dominated by shang; shang is autumn — autumn is when heaven is about to shake down and kill in severity — is this not the year's twilight? Jin rode the fortune of metal; shang is also the sound of metal — this is how one knows Wei was ending and Jin was about to replace it. When the shang string is slackened to match the gong tone — the principle of a minister usurping his lord — one knows the Sima clan was about to usurp. Wang Ling, Guanqiu Jian, Wen Qin, and Zhuge Dan served in succession as governors of Yangzhou; all harbored plans to restore Wei, and all were killed by Sima Yi and his son. Ji regarded Yangzhou as the old territory of Guangling; Ling and the others were all Wei ministers — therefore he named the piece "Guangling San," saying Wei's dissolution and ruin began at Guangling. "Zhixi" means: though Jin rose violently, it ultimately ceased and rested here. Every note of grief and rage, agitation and constriction, bitter pain and forced oppression is gathered in this piece. Was this not the omen of the Yongjia catastrophe! Ji Kang, fleeing the calamity of Jin and Wei, entrusted his meaning to spirits and ghosts, waiting for a kindred spirit in later ages — so the tradition runs."

洄字幼深，蔭補弘文生，滿歲，參調吏部侍郎，達奚珣以地望抑之。除章懷太子陵令，無慍容。安祿山亂，家七人遇害，洄避難江南，蔬食不聽樂。乾元中，授睦州別駕，劉晏表為屯田員外郎，知揚子留後。召拜諫議大夫，與補闕李翰數上章言得失，擢知制誥。坐與元載善，貶邵州司戶參軍。德宗即位，起為淮南黜陟使，復為諫議大夫。

Hui, styled Youshen, entered the Hongwen Academy by hereditary privilege. When his year was complete he presented himself for assignment before the Vice Minister of Personnel, but Daxi Xun blocked him on account of his family's standing. He was appointed keeper of the tomb of Crown Prince Zhanghuai and showed not the slightest resentment. When the An Lushan rebellion broke out, seven members of his family were killed. Hui fled south of the Yangtze, ate only plain food, and would not listen to music. During the Qianyuan era he was appointed vice prefect of Muzhou. Liu Yan recommended him as supernumerary vice director of the Directorate of Agriculture and acting Yangzi rear commissioner. He was summoned and appointed remonstrance official. Together with remonstrance aide Li Han he repeatedly submitted memorials on policy, and was promoted to drafting secretary. Because he was close to Yuan Zai, he was demoted to registrar of Shaozhou. When Emperor Dezong took the throne, Hui was recalled as investigative commissioner of Huainan and again appointed remonstrance official.

晏被罪，天下錢谷歸尚書省，而省司廢久，無綱紀，莫總其任，乃擢洄戶部侍郎，判度支。洄上言：「江、淮七監，歲鑄錢四萬五千緡輸京師，工用運轉，每緡度二千，是本倍於子。今商州紅崖冶產銅，而洛源監久廢，請鑿山取銅，即治舊監，置十爐鑄之，歲得錢七萬二千緡，度費每緡九百，則得可浮本矣。江、淮七監，請皆罷。」又言：「天下銅鐵冶，乃山澤利，當歸王者，請悉隸鹽鐵使。」從之。復罷省胥史冗食二千人，積米長安、萬年二縣各數十萬石，視年豐耗而發斂焉，故人不艱食。

When Liu Yan was punished, control of the realm's money and grain passed to the Ministry of Revenue, but its offices had long lain idle and no one could bring order to the work. Hui was therefore promoted to vice minister of revenue with concurrent charge of the Department of Public Finance. Hui submitted a memorial: "The seven mints of the Yangtze and Huai annually cast forty-five thousand strings of cash for delivery to the capital. Labor, materials, and transport cost about two thousand per string — the cost exceeds the coin produced. The Hongya smeltery in Shangzhou now produces copper, while the Luoyuan mint has long been abandoned. I ask that mountains be opened to mine copper, the old mint restored, and ten furnaces set up to cast coin — yielding seventy-two thousand strings yearly at an estimated cost of nine hundred per string, so that profit would exceed cost. I ask that all seven Yangtze and Huai mints be abolished. He also said, "Copper and iron smelteries throughout the realm are profits of mountains and marshes and ought to belong to the sovereign. I ask that all be placed under the Salt and Iron Commissioner." His proposals were adopted. He also abolished two thousand superfluous clerks and retainers in the ministry, stored grain in Chang'an and Wannian to several hundred thousand shi each, and released or gathered it according to whether the year was abundant or lean — so the people did not suffer hardship in food.

洄與楊炎善，炎得罪，不自安。無何，臯上疏理炎罪，帝意洄教之，貶蜀州刺史。興元元年，入為兵部侍郎，轉京兆尹。貞元十年，終國子祭酒，贈戶部尚書。

Hui was close to Yang Yan. When Yan was punished, Hui grew uneasy. Before long Gao submitted a memorial to clear Yan's guilt. The emperor suspected Hui had put him up to it and demoted Hui to prefect of Shuzhou. In the first year of the Xingyuan era he entered court as vice minister of war, then was transferred to metropolitan governor. In the tenth year of the Zhenyuan era he died as chancellor of the Directorate of Education and was posthumously made minister of revenue.

贊曰：人之立事，無不銳始而工於初，至其半則稍怠，卒而漫澶不振也。觀玄宗開元時，厲精求治，元老魁舊，動所尊憚，故姚元崇、宋璟言聽計行，力不難而功已成。及太平久，左右大臣皆帝自識擢，狎而易之，誌滿意驕，而張九齡爭愈切，言益不聽。夫誌滿則忽其所謀，意驕則樂軟熟、憎鯁切，較力雖多，課所效不及姚、宋遠矣。終之胡雛亂華，身播邊陬，非曰天運，亦人事有致而然。若知古等皆宰相選，使當天寶時，庸能有救哉！

The encomium says: In whatever men undertake, none fail to begin sharply and excel at the start; by the halfway point they slacken somewhat, and in the end grow slack and cannot rouse themselves again. Consider the Kaiyuan era of Emperor Xuanzong: he strove with keen spirit to seek good government, and the senior elders and leading ministers were all men he revered and feared. Thus Yao Chong and Song Jing had their words heard and plans followed; the effort was not arduous, yet achievement was already won. When peace had lasted long, the ministers at his side were all men the emperor himself had known and promoted; he treated them familiarly and lightly. His will was sated and his mind proud, while Zhang Jiuling remonstrated ever more urgently — yet the emperor listened ever less. When the will is sated one neglects what one planned; when the mind is proud one delights in what is soft and familiar and hates blunt remonstrance. Though effort may be great, measured achievement falls far short of Yao Chong and Song Jing. In the end the barbarian rebel threw China into chaos and the sovereign himself was cast to the border marches. This cannot be ascribed to Heaven's decree alone; human affairs also had their part in bringing it about. If men such as Wei Zhiyang had all been chosen as chancellors and placed in the Tianbao era — how could they have saved the realm!

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