Volume 129 Biographies 54: Pei, Cui, Lu, Li, Wang, Yan

裴崔盧李王嚴

Pei, Cui, Lu, Li, Wang, and Yan

◎裴崔盧李王嚴

◎ Pei, Cui, Lu, Li, Wang, and Yan

裴守真，絳州稷山人，後魏冀州刺史叔業六世孫。父諲，隋大業中為淮安司戶參軍。郡人楊琳、田瓚等亂，劫吏多死，唯諲以仁愛故，賊約其屬無敢害，護送還鄉。

Pei Shouzhen was a native of Jishan in Jiangzhou; he was a sixth-generation descendant of Shu Ye, Governor of Ji in the Northern Wei. His father Yin served as Assistant Registrar of Huaian in the Daye era of Sui. When Yang Lin, Tian Zan, and others of the commandery rebelled, most officials were killed in the raid; only Yin, because of his humane kindness, had the bandits instruct their followers not to harm him, and they escorted him back to his home village.

守真早孤，母喪，哀毀臒盡。舉進士，六科連中，累調乾封尉。養寡姊謹甚，士推其禮法。永淳初，關中旱，悉稟祿奉姊及諸甥，與妻息惡食不贍也。

Shouzhen was orphaned early; when his mother died, his grief was so extreme that he wasted away to skin and bone. He passed the jinshi examination, scored successively in six subjects, and was repeatedly promoted to the post of Magistrate of Qianfeng. He supported his widowed elder sister with the utmost care; scholars acclaimed him for his propriety and ritual conduct. In the early Yongchun period, when Guanzhong suffered drought, he allotted his entire salary to his sister and all his nephews and nieces, while he and his wife and children ate coarse food and could not feed themselves adequately.

授太常博士。守真善容典，時謂才稱其官。高宗將封嵩山，詔諸儒議射牲事。守真奏：「古者郊祀天地，天子自射牲。漢武帝封太山，令侍中儒者射之，帝不親也。今按禮，前明十五刻，宰人鸞刀割牲，質明行事，毛血已具，天子至，奠玉酌獻而已。今若前祀一日射牲，則早於事；及日，則晚不逮事。漢又天子不親，古今異宜，恐不可行。」是時，《破陣》、《慶善》二樂舞入，帝常立以視，須樂闋乃坐。守真並言：「二舞誠祖宗盛德，然古無天子立觀者。化育詒庇，孰非闕功，不應鼓舞別申嚴奉。」詔可，未及行。會帝崩，大行舊禮無在者，守真與博士韋叔夏、輔抱素等討按故事，稱情為文，鹹適所宜，時人服其得禮。

He was appointed Doctor of the Grand Temple. Shouzhen was skilled in ceremonial matters and musical standards, and at the time people said his talent matched his office. When Emperor Gaozong was about to perform the feng sacrifice on Mount Song, he ordered the Confucian scholars to discuss the matter of shooting the sacrificial victims. Shouzhen memorialized: "In antiquity, when sacrificing to Heaven and Earth at the suburban altars, the Son of Heaven shot the victims himself. When Emperor Wu of Han enfeoffed Mount Tai, he had attendant gentlemen and Confucians shoot them; the Emperor did not do so in person. Now, according to the Rites, at the quarter-hour before dawn the butcher takes the luan knife and slaughters the victims; at daybreak the ceremony proceeds, and by then the hair and blood are already prepared. When the Son of Heaven arrives, he need only set down the jade and pour the libation. If one shoots the victims a day before the sacrifice, that is too early for the rite; if one does it on the day itself, it is too late and will not meet the requirements of the ceremony. Under Han too the Son of Heaven did not shoot in person; ancient and modern practice differ, and I fear this cannot be carried out." At that time the two dance pieces Po Zhen and Qing Shan were introduced; the Emperor would often stand to watch them and would not sit until the music ended. Shouzhen also stated: "These two dances truly embody the great virtue of our ancestors, yet in antiquity there was no precedent for the Son of Heaven to stand and watch. In nourishing and transforming all under Heaven and extending shelter to them, whose merit is not a matter of highest consequence? One should not, through drumming and dancing, set them apart for exceptional reverence." The edict approved his views, but before they could be implemented— the Emperor died. There was no surviving precedent for the mourning rites of a Grand Procession. Shouzhen, together with the Doctors Wei Shuxia and Fu Baosu and others, searched out precedents, shaped sentiments into text, and all fitted what was appropriate; people at the time admired that they had grasped the rites.

天授中，為司府丞，推核詔獄，多裁恕，全免數十姓。不合武後旨，出為汴州司馬。遷累成州刺史，政不務威嚴，吏民兩懷之。徙寧州，送者千數，出境尚不止。長安中卒，贈戶部尚書。

In the Tianshou period he served as Assistant Director of the Department of Public Works; in investigating cases by imperial edict he often showed clemency in judgment and fully exonerated dozens of clans. Because this did not accord with Empress Wu's intent, he was sent out as Assistant Administrator of Bianzhou. After successive promotions he became Prefect of Chengzhou; in governing he did not rely on severity and awe, and both officials and commoners were attached to him. When he was transferred to Ningzhou, more than a thousand people came to see him off; even after he had left the prefecture they would not turn back. He died in the Chang'an period and was posthumously given the office of Minister of Revenue.

子子余、耀卿、巨卿。曾孫行立。耀卿、巨卿別有傳。

His sons were Ziyu, Yaoqing, and Juqing. His great-grandson was Xingli. Yaoqing and Juqing have separate biographies.

子余事繼母以孝聞，中明經，補鄠尉。時同舍李朝隱、程行諶以文法稱，而子余以儒顯，或問優劣於長史陳崇業，答曰：「蘭菊異芬，胡有廢者？」

Ziyu was famed for filial piety toward his stepmother; he passed the mingjing examination and was appointed Assistant Magistrate of E. At the time his colleagues in the same lodging, Li Chaoyin and Cheng Xingchen, were celebrated for mastery of penal and administrative law, while Ziyu was distinguished for Confucian learning. When someone asked the Chief Commandant Chen Chongye which was superior, he answered: "Orchid and chrysanthemum have different fragrances—how could one discard either?"

景龍中，為左臺監察御史。涇、岐有隋世番戶子孫數千家，司農卿趙履溫奏籍為奴婢，充賜口。子余曰：「官戶以恩原為番戶，且今又子孫，可抑為賤乎？」履溫倚宗楚客勢，辯於廷，子余執對不撓，遂詘其議。

In the Jinglong period he served as Investigating Censor of the Left Office. In Jing and Qi there were several thousand descendants of the Sui-era fan households. Director of the Directorate of Agriculture Zhao Lüwen memorialized to register them as slaves and servants to supply as gift recipients. Ziyu said: "Official households were originally granted favor and reclassified as fan households; moreover they now have descendants—how can they be demoted to mean status?" Lüwen relied on the power of Zong Chuke and was eloquent in court, but Ziyu held to his rebuttal without yielding, and in the end Lüwen's proposal was rejected.

開元初，累遷冀州刺史，為政惠裕，人稱有恩。入為岐王府長史。卒，謚曰孝。時程行諶謚貞。中書令張說嘆曰：「二謚可無愧矣！」子余居官清，家闈友愛，兄弟六人，皆有誌行雲。

In the early Kaiyuan period he was repeatedly promoted to Prefect of Jizhou; in administration he was generous and lenient, and people praised him for his kindness. He entered the capital as Chief Administrator of the Princedom of Qi. When he died, his posthumous title was Xiao (Filial). At the time Cheng Xingchen's posthumous title was Zhen (Upright). Chief Minister Zhang Yue exclaimed: "The two posthumous names are without shame!" Ziyu in office was upright; at home he was affectionate toward his family. Among six brothers, all had ambition and conduct worthy of note.

行立，重然諾，學兵有法。母亡，泣血幾毀。以軍勞累授沁州刺史，遷衛尉少卿。口陳願治民，試一縣自效，除河東令，寬猛時當。由蘄州刺史遷安南經略使。環王國叛人李樂山謀廢其君，來乞兵，行立不受，命部將杜英策討斬之，歸其孥，蠻人悅服。英策及範廷芝者，皆谿洞豪也，隸於軍，它經略使多假借，暴恣幹治，行立陰把其罪，貸之，許自效，故能得英策死力。廷芝嘗休沐，久不還，行立召之，約曰：「軍法，逾日者斬，異時復然，爾且死！」後廷芝逾期，行立笞殺之，以屍還範氏，更為擇良子弟以代，於是威聲風行。徙桂管觀察使。黃家洞賊叛，行立討平之。俄代桂仲武為安南都護。銳於立功，為時所訾。召還，道卒，年四十七，贈右散騎常侍。

Xingli placed great weight on keeping his word and studied military methods with discipline. When his mother died, he wept blood and nearly destroyed himself with grief. For military merit he was repeatedly appointed Prefect of Qinzhou, then promoted to Vice Director of the Court of the Imperial Stud. He stated orally his wish to govern the people and asked to try his ability in one county; he was appointed Magistrate of Hedong, and his balance of leniency and severity was always appropriate. From Prefect of Qi Prefecture he was transferred to Commissioner for Pacifying the South in Annan. Li Leshan, a rebel of the Huanwang kingdom, plotted to depose his ruler and came to beg troops; Xingli refused. He ordered his subordinate general Du Yingce to attack and behead him, returned his wife and children, and the barbarians submitted gladly. Yingce and Fan Tingzhi were both powerful men of the stream-and-cave districts who were subordinated to the army; other commissioners for pacification often borrowed them and, violent and willful, interfered in governance. Xingli secretly grasped their crimes, pardoned them, and allowed them to redeem themselves through service; thus he could obtain Yingce's utmost loyalty even unto death. Once when Tingzhi took leave, he did not return for a long time. Xingli summoned him and warned: "Under military law, one who is overdue is to be executed. If this happens again, you will die!" Later Tingzhi was overdue; Xingli had him flogged to death and returned the corpse to the Fan clan, then selected a worthy younger kinsman to replace him. Thereafter his authority and reputation spread like the wind. He was transferred to Commissioner as Observer of Guiguan. When the Huangjiadong bandits rebelled, Xingli suppressed and pacified them. Soon he replaced Gui Zhongwu as Protector-General of Annan. Keen to achieve merit, he was criticized by people of the time. He was recalled and died on the road at the age of forty-seven; he was posthumously given the post of Right Regular Attendant at the Palace Gate.

崔沔，字善沖，京兆長安人，後周隴州刺史士約四世孫，自博陵徙焉。純謹無二言，事親篤孝，有才章。擢進士。舉賢良方正高第，不中者誦訾之，武後敕有司覆試，對益工，遂為第一。再補陸渾主簿，入調吏部，侍郎岑義嘆曰：「君今郤詵也！」薦為左補闕。性舒遲，進止雍如也，當官則正言，不可得而詘。睿宗召授中書舍人，以母病東都不忍去，固辭求侍，更表陸渾尉郭鄰、太樂丞封希顏、處士李喜以代己處。詔改虞部郎中，俄檢校御史中丞。請發太倉粟及減苑囿鳥獸所給以賑貧乏，人賴其利。監察御史宋宣遠與盧懷慎姻家，恃以弄法；姚崇子彜留司東都，通賓客，招賄賂。沔將按劾，崇、懷慎方執政，共薦沔有史才，轉著作郎，去其權，蓋憚之也。久之，為太子左庶子。母亡，受吊廬前，賓客未嘗至柩室。語人曰：「平生非至親不升堂入謁，豈以存亡變禮邪？」中書令張說數稱之。服除，遷中書侍郎。

Cui Hao, style name Shanchong, was a native of Chang'an in Jingzhao; he was a fourth-generation descendant of Shi Yue, Governor of Long in the Later Zhou, and his family had moved thither from Boling. Pure and careful, never speaking a careless word; in serving his parents he was deeply filial and had literary talent. He was selected as jinshi. In the examination for Worthy and Upright with outstanding achievement, those who failed slandered him. Empress Wu ordered the authorities to retest him; his answers were even more polished, and he took first place. After a second appointment as Registrar of Luhun, he entered for transfer at the Ministry of Personnel; Vice Minister Cen Yi exclaimed: "Sir, you are today's Xi Shen!" He was recommended as Left Remonstrator. By nature unhurried, his movements and pauses were dignified; when he held office he spoke uprightly and could not be bent aside. Emperor Ruizong summoned him and appointed him Drafting Attendant of the Secretariat, but because his mother was ill in the eastern capital he could not bear to leave and firmly declined, asking to attend her; he further memorialized that Guo Lin, Registrar of Luhun, Feng Xiyan, Assistant Director of the Imperial Music Office, and the recluse Li Xi might replace him in office. An edict changed his post to Doctor of the Office of Parks and Manufactories, and soon he was made Acting Censor-in-Chief. He requested that grain from the ever-normal granaries be released and that supplies to birds and beasts from the imperial parks be reduced to relieve the poor; people benefited from his policy. Investigating Censor Song Xuanyuan was related by marriage to Lu Huaishen and relied on that connection to manipulate the law; Yao Chong's son Yi, staying behind as chief in the eastern capital, entertained guests freely and solicited bribes. Hao was about to investigate and impeach them. Chong and Huaishen were then in power and together recommended Hao as having talent for historiography, transferring him to Compiler, thereby removing his authority—essentially because they feared him. After a long while he became Left Assistant to the Heir Apparent. When his mother died, he received mourners in the mourning hut; guests never entered the chamber of the coffin. He told people: "In life I never ascended the hall or paid a visit except to the closest kin—should I change ritual because of life and death?" Chief Minister Zhang Yue often praised him. When mourning ended, he was promoted to Vice Minister of the Secretariat.

玄宗以仙州數喪刺史，欲廢之，沔請治舞陽，舞陽，故樊噲國也，更為樊州，帝不納，州卒廢。沔既喜論得失，或曰：「今中書宰相承制，雖侍郎貳之，取充位而已。」沔曰：「百官分職，上下相維，以成至治，豈可俯首懷祿邪？」凡詔敕曹事，多所異同，說不悅，出為魏州刺史。雨潦敗稼，沔弛禁便人。召還。分掌吏部十銓，以左散騎常侍為集賢修撰，歷秘書監、太子賓客。

Emperor Xuanzong, because several governors of Xian Prefecture had died in office, wished to abolish it. Hao asked to govern Wuyang—Wuyang being the former state of Fan Kuai—and rename it Fan Prefecture. The Emperor did not accept it; the prefecture was eventually abolished. Because Hao delighted in discussing right and wrong, someone said: "Today the Secretariat Chancellor receives imperial decrees; although the Vice Minister assists, one merely fills the post." Hao said: "Officials each have their duties; superiors and subordinates mutually support one another to achieve the highest governance—how can one bow one's head and clutch one's salary?" Whenever drafting edicts and handling Secretariat affairs involved many differences, Yue was displeased and sent him out as Prefect of Weizhou. When heavy rains ruined the crops, Hao relaxed prohibitions to benefit the people. He was recalled. He shared responsibility for the ten selection boards of the Ministry of Personnel, served as Left Regular Attendant at the Palace Gate in the compilation of the Imperial Library, and successively held the posts of Director of the Secretariat and Mentor to the Heir Apparent.

是時，太常議加宗廟籩豆，又欲增喪服，於是卿韋縚請坐增籩豆至十二；外祖服大功，舅小功，堂姨若舅、舅母袒免。沔曰：「祭祀上矣，古者飲食必先嚴獻。未有火化，故有毛血之薦，未有曲糵，故有玄酒之奠。後王作為酒醴、犧牲以致馨香，故有三牲、八簋、五齊、九獻。神道主敬，可備而不敢廢也，雖曰備物，而節制存焉。钘俎、籩豆、簠簋尊罍之實，皆周時饌，其用通宴饗賓客，而周公與毛血、玄酒同薦於先祖。晉盧諶家祭禮，所薦皆晉時常食，不純用古。此聖賢變文而通其情也。然當時飲食不可闕於祭，明矣。國家清廟時享，禮饌具設，周制也，古物存焉。園寢上食，時膳備列，漢法也，它珍極焉。職貢來祭，致遠物也。有新必薦，順時令也。苑囿躬稼所收，搜狩親中，莫不薦而後食，盡誠敬民。若此至矣，無以加矣。諸珍羞鮮物，第敕有司悉使著於令，因宜而薦，不必加籩豆以為嗛也。大羹，古食也，盛於古器。和羹，常饌也，盛於時器。毛血盛於盤，玄酒盛於尊。未有薦時饌而用古器者，繇古質而今文，便事也。故加籩豆未足盡天下美物，而措諸朝，徒近侈耳。魯丹桓宮之楹，刻其桷，《春秋》非之。班固稱：『墨家出於清廟，是以貴儉。』然清廟不奢，舊矣。太常所請，臣所未安。」

At that time the Grand Temple deliberated increasing the bamboo bean vessels in the ancestral temple and also wished to expand mourning garments. Therefore Vice Minister Wei Yun requested that the supplemental vessels be increased to twelve; mourning for maternal grandparents in the major mourning grade, for uncles on the mother's side in the lesser mourning grade, and for paternal aunts as for uncles and for maternal uncles and aunts the bared-shoulder mourning without full garments. Hao said: "Sacrifice is supreme. In antiquity one always first made a solemn offering before eating. Before the discovery of fire, there were offerings of hair and blood; before the discovery of fermentation, there were libations of dark liquor. Later kings created wine and grain liquor and victims to bring fragrance; hence the three victims, the eight gui vessels, the five clarified liquors, and the nine presentations. The way of the spirits is grounded in reverence: what may be provided must not be abandoned through neglect, and though one speaks of fully providing things, restraint is preserved within. The filling of the offering stand, the bamboo vessels, and the gui and bo vessels and wine jars—all were Zhou-period foods, used commonly for feasts and entertaining guests—yet the Duke of Zhou presented them together with hair-and-blood and dark liquor before the ancestors. In the Jin period, Lu Chen's family sacrificial rites offered all foods that were regular fare in Jin times, not purely using ancient ones. This is how sages and worthies changed the text to express their meaning and meet the situation. Yet it is clear that the diet of the time could not be omitted from sacrifice. When the state offers seasonal sacrifices in the Clear Temple, ritual foods are fully set out—that is Zhou practice, and ancient things are preserved therein. In the park-tombs, superior offerings and timely banquet provisions are fully arrayed—that is Han practice, with other delicacies at their utmost. Tribute from duty offices arriving for sacrifice brings distant products. Whenever there is something new it must be offered—that follows the seasons. What is harvested from the imperial parks through personal plowing, what is caught in personal hunts—none is eaten before being offered; utmost sincerity and respect for the people. If it reaches this point, nothing can be added. For all delicacies and fresh things, simply order the relevant offices to set them down in regulations and offer them as appropriate; there is no need to add bamboo vessels merely out of modesty. Da geng is ancient food, served in ancient vessels. Harmonized broth is everyday food, served in contemporary vessels. Hair and blood belong in platters; dark liquor belongs in goblets. No one has ever offered seasonal foods in ancient vessels—from the plainness of old times to the refinement of today, what matters is what is fitting. Adding more ritual baskets and stands still could not display every delicacy under Heaven; to parade them at court would be nothing but a step toward extravagance. When the Duke of Lu carved the pillars of Duke Huan's ancestral temple and decorated the rafter-ends, the Spring and Autumn Annals censured him for it. Ban Gu wrote: 『The Mohist school took its origin in the Clear Temple, and for that reason honors thrift. 』Yet the Clear Temple itself has never been lavish; that has been true since antiquity. The Grand Temple's proposal is something your minister cannot yet accept with confidence.」

又太常言：「爵小不及合，執持至難。」沔曰：「禮有以小為貴者，獻以爵是也。然今不及制，則非禮，自有司之陋也。隨失制宜，不待議而革雲。」又言：「禮本於家正，家正而天下定。家不可以貳，故父以尊崇，母以厭降。是以內服齊斬，外服緦，尊名所加，不過一等，今古不易之道也。昔辛有適伊川，見被發而祭，知其將戎，禮先亡也。比制《唐禮》，推廣舅恩，故弘道以來，國命再移於外姓，本禮驗亡，可不戒哉！」時職方郎中韋述、戶部郎中陽伯成、禮部員外郎楊仲昌、監門兵曹參軍劉秩等議與沔合，又詔中書門下參裁，於是宗廟籩豆坐各六，姨若舅小功，舅母緦麻，堂姨袒免，余仍舊制。

The Grand Temple also argued: 「The jue cup is too small to hold a full measure and is very hard to carry. 」Hao replied: 「Ritual sometimes honors what is small; offering wine with the jue cup is exactly such a case. But if today's cups fail to meet the proper standard, that is not ritual at all—it is simply the incompetence of the offices charged with the task. Adjust what is lacking and fashion what is appropriate; reform need not wait for endless debate. 」He went on: 「Ritual begins with proper order in the family; when the family is in order, the realm is stable. A household cannot have two masters; hence the father is honored by elevation and the mother by reverent deference. That is why close kin wear qi and zhan mourning while more distant kin wear si mourning, and the honor conferred by a title may rise by only one degree—a principle unchanged from ancient times to our own. Long ago Xinyou, traveling through Yichuan, saw people with unbound hair making sacrifice and knew barbarians were coming—ritual had already collapsed. When the Tang Rites were recently codified, mourning for maternal uncles was extended; since the Hongdao era the throne has twice passed to outsiders—a proof that the root ritual was already lost. Should we not take warning! 」At the time Wei Shu of the Duty Office, Yang Bocheng of the Ministry of Revenue, Yang Zhongchang of the Ministry of Rites, Liu Zhi of the Gate Guard, and others sided with Hao; the throne also ordered the Secretariat and Chancellery to decide the matter. In the end each ancestral setting kept six basket-and-bean vessels; maternal aunts received the same lesser mourning as maternal uncles, maternal uncles' wives received finest hemp mourning, and paternal female cousins received bared-shoulder mourning, while everything else stayed under the old rules.

每朝廷有疑議，皆咨逮取衷。卒，年六十七，贈禮部尚書，謚曰孝。沔儉約自持，祿稟隨散宗族，不治居宅，嘗作《陋室銘》以見誌。子祐甫至宰相，別傳。

Whenever the court faced a disputed question, it consulted Hao to settle on a final decision. He died at sixty-seven, was posthumously made Minister of Rites, and received the posthumous name Xia, Filial. Hao lived frugally and held himself to strict restraint, giving away his salary and grain rations to the clan as soon as they arrived; he kept no fine house and once wrote Inscription on a Humble Chamber to declare his convictions. His son Youfu rose to chancellor; he is treated in a separate biography.

盧從願，字子龔。六世祖昶，仕後魏為度支尚書，自范陽徙臨漳，故從願為臨漳人。擢明經，為夏尉。又舉制科高第，拜右拾遺，遷監察御史，為山南黜陟巡撫使，還奏稱旨，累進中書舍人。

Lu Congyuan, courtesy name Zigong. His sixth-generation ancestor Chang served the Northern Wei as Minister of Revenue; the family moved from Fanyang to Linzhang, so Congyuan was a native of Linzhang. He passed the Mingjing examination and was appointed magistrate of Xia. He also placed at the top of a special decree examination, was made Reminder of the Right, rose to Investigating Censor, served as Dismissal-and-Promotion Commissioner for Shannan, and on his return submitted memorials that pleased the emperor; he was then promoted repeatedly until he became Drafting Secretary of the Central Secretariat.

睿宗立，拜吏部侍郎。吏選自中宗後綱紀耗蕩，從願精力於官，偽牒詭功，擿檢無所遺，銓總六年，以平允聞。帝異之，特官其一子。從願請贈其父敬一為鄭州長史，制可。初，高宗時，吏部號稱職者裴行儉、馬載，及是，從願與李朝隱為有名，故號「前有裴、馬，後有盧、李」。

When Emperor Ruizong acceded, he was appointed Vice Minister of Personnel. After Emperor Zhongzong, the rules governing appointments had fallen into disorder; Congyuan threw himself into the work, exposing forged documents and false claims of merit without missing a case. Over six years in charge of selection he became known for evenhanded fairness. The emperor was impressed and specially granted office to one of his sons. Congyuan asked that his father Jingyi be posthumously appointed Prefect of Zhengzhou, and the edict approved the request. In Emperor Gaozong's day the Ministry of Personnel had been praised for the competence of Pei Xingjian and Ma Zai; now Congyuan and Li Chaoyin won equal renown, and people said, "Before there were Pei and Ma; afterward there are Lu and Li."

開元四年，玄宗悉召縣令策於廷，考下第者罷之。從願坐擬選失實，下遷豫州刺史。政嚴簡，奏課為天下第一，寶書勞問，賜絹百匹。召為工部侍郎，遷尚書左丞、中書侍郎，以工部尚書留守東都，代韋抗為刑部尚書。數充校考使，升退詳確。

In Kaiyuan 4 Emperor Xuanzong summoned every county magistrate to an imperial policy examination and removed those who failed. Congyuan was punished because some of his nominations proved false and was demoted to Prefect of Yuzhou. His administration was strict but uncluttered; his annual report ranked first in the empire, and the emperor sent a letter of praise and granted him one hundred bolts of silk. He was recalled as Vice Minister of Works, then promoted to Left Assistant Director of the Department of State Affairs and Vice Director of the Secretariat; as Minister of Works he remained at the Eastern Capital, and later replaced Wei Kang as Minister of Punishments. He served several times as examination commissioner, and his decisions on promotion and demotion were thorough and precise.

御史中丞宇文融方用事，將以括田戶功為上下考，從願不許，融恨之，乃密白「從願盛殖產，占良田數百頃」，帝自此薄之，目為多田翁。後欲用為相屢矣，卒以是止。十八年，復為東都留守，坐子起居郎論輸糴於官取利多，貶絳州刺史，遷太子賓客。二十年，河北饑，詔為宣撫處置使，發倉廥賑饑民。使還，乞骸骨，授吏部尚書致仕，給全祿終身。卒，贈益州大都督，謚曰文。

Censor-in-Chief Yuwen Rong was then in power and wanted annual ratings to depend on the results of his land-registration campaign; Congyuan refused. Rong bore a grudge and secretly reported that "Congyuan has amassed estates and seized several hundred qing of good farmland." From then on the emperor thought less of him and nicknamed him the Old Man of Many Fields. Afterward the emperor several times meant to make him chancellor, but in the end always stopped because of this. In the eighteenth year he again served as Eastern Capital Intendant; because his son Lun, an attendant of the heir apparent, had sold grain to the government at excessive profit, he was demoted to Prefect of Jiangzhou and then made Mentor of the Heir Apparent. In the twentieth year, when Hebei suffered famine, he was appointed Pacification and Disposition Commissioner and opened the granaries to feed the starving. When his mission ended he asked to retire; he was made Minister of Personnel with permission to leave office and granted his full salary for life. He died and was posthumously made Great Governor-General of Yizhou with the posthumous name Wen, Cultured.

李朝隱，字光國，京兆三原人。明法中第，調臨汾尉，擢至大理丞。武三思構五王，而侍御史鄭愔請誅之，朝隱獨以「不經鞫實，不宜輕用法」，忤旨，貶嶺南醜地。宰相韋巨源、李嶠言於中宗曰：「朝隱素清正，一日遠逐，恐駭天下。」帝更以為聞喜令。

Li Chaoyin, courtesy name Guangguo, was a native of Sanyuan in Jingzhao. He placed high on the Mingfa examination, was assigned as magistrate of Linfen, and rose to Assistant Director of the Court of Judicial Review. When Wu Sansi framed the Five Princes and Attending Censor Zheng Yin asked that they be executed, Chaoyin alone objected that "without trial and verified facts the law should not be applied lightly," defying the imperial will; he was banished to a remote place in Lingnan. Chancellors Wei Juyuan and Li Jiao said to Emperor Zhongzong: 「Chaoyin has always been upright; to banish him overnight would shock the realm. 」The emperor then reassigned him as magistrate of Wenxi.

遷侍御史、吏部員外郎。時政出權幸，不關兩省而內授官，但斜封其狀付中書，即宣所司。朝隱執罷千四百員，怨誹歡騰，朝隱胖然無避屈。遷長安令，宦官閭興貴有所幹請，曳去之。睿宗嘉嘆，後禦承天門，對百官及朝集使褒諭其能，使遍聞之。進太中大夫一階，賜中上考、絹百匹，以旌剛烈。成安公主奪民園，不酬直，朝隱取主奴杖之，由是權豪斂伏。為執政所擠，出通州都督，徙絳州刺史。開元初，遷吏部侍郎，銓敘明審，與盧從願並授一子官。久之，以策縣令有下第，降滑州刺史，徙同州。玄宗東幸，召見慰勞，賜以衣、帛。擢河南尹，政嚴清，奸人不容息。太子舅趙常奴怙勢橫閭裏，朝隱曰：「此不繩，不可為政。」執而搒辱之，帝賜書慰勉。

He was promoted to Attending Censor and Vice Director in the Ministry of Personnel. At the time power lay with favored courtiers; appointments bypassed the two secretariats and were made by private decree—the documents were simply slant-sealed and sent to the Central Secretariat, which then announced them to the relevant offices. Chaoyin enforced the removal of fourteen hundred appointees; resentment and slander erupted everywhere, yet he remained composed and unyielding, never shrinking from the task. Promoted to magistrate of Chang'an, he once had eunuch Lu Xinggui dragged away when the man tried to press a private request on him. Emperor Ruizong praised him warmly; later, at Chengtian Gate, he addressed the officials and provincial envoys, commended Chaoyin's conduct, and had the praise spread throughout the court. Chaoyin was promoted one rank to Grand Master of the Palace, given an upper-middle performance rating and one hundred bolts of silk, in recognition of his stern integrity. When Princess Cheng'an seized a commoner's garden without paying fair value, Chaoyin had the princess's servants beaten with the rod, and from then on the powerful families kept their heads down. Pushed aside by those in power, he was sent out as Military Governor of Tongzhou and later transferred to Prefect of Jiangzhou. Early in the Kaiyuan era he became Vice Minister of Personnel; his evaluations were clear and exact, and he and Lu Congyuan were each granted office for a son. After some time, because some county magistrates he had recommended failed their policy examinations, he was demoted to Prefect of Hua and then transferred to Tong Prefecture. When Emperor Xuanzong traveled east, he summoned Chaoyin, comforted him, and granted him clothing and silk. He was promoted to Governor of Henan; his rule was strict and clean, and wrongdoers found no refuge. The heir apparent's maternal uncle Zhao Changnu abused his connections and terrorized the neighborhood; Chaoyin said: 「If men like this are not restrained by law, there can be no government. 」He had him seized, beaten, and publicly shamed; the emperor then sent a letter praising and encouraging him.

入為大理卿。武強令裴景仙丐贓五千匹，亡命，帝怒，詔殺之。朝隱曰：「景仙，其先寂有國功，載初時，家為酷吏所破，誅夷略盡，而景仙獨存，且承嫡，於法當請。又丐乞贓無死比，藉當死坐，猶將宥之，使私廟之祀無餒魂可也。」帝不許，固請曰：「生殺之柄，人主專之；條別輕重，有司當守。且贓惟枉法抵死，今丐贓即斬，後有枉法，亦又何加？且近發德音，杖者聽減，流者給程，豈一景仙獨過常法？」有詔決杖百，流嶺南。

He was recalled to serve as Director of the Court of Judicial Review. Pei Jingxian, magistrate of Wuqiang, embezzled five thousand bolts of silk and fled; the emperor in anger ordered his execution. Chaoyin said: 「Jingxian's ancestor Pei Ji helped found the dynasty; in the Zaichu era his family was ruined by harsh officials and nearly wiped out, yet Jingxian alone survived as the legitimate heir. Under the law he should be allowed to plead for mercy. Moreover, embezzlement carries no mandatory death penalty; even when a capital offense might apply, mercy is still possible, so that private ancestral rites need not go unperformed for want of an heir. 」The emperor refused, but Chaoyin pressed on: 「The power of life and death belongs to the ruler alone; but distinguishing lighter from heavier penalties is what the offices must uphold. Only corruption through bending the law carries the death penalty; if mere embezzlement now means immediate execution, what punishment remains for the graver crime of bending the law? Besides, a recent amnesty allowed commutation for those sentenced to beating and travel funds for those exiled—why should Jingxian alone be treated more harshly than the law allows? 」An edict was issued sentencing him to one hundred blows with the rod and exile to Lingnan.

朝隱更授岐州刺史，母喪解。召為揚州大都督府長史，固辭，見聽。時年已衰，而篤於孝，自致毀瘠，士人以為難。明年，詔書敦遣揚州就職。還為大理卿，封金城伯，代崔隱甫為御史大夫。天下以其有素望，每大夫缺，冀朝隱得之。及居職，不爭引大體，惟先細務，由是名少衰。進太常卿，出為嶺南采訪處置使，兼判廣州。卒於官，贈吏部尚書，官給車槥北還，謚曰貞。

Chaoyin was again appointed Prefect of Qi, then left office when his mother died. He was summoned to serve as Chief Administrator of the Yangzhou Metropolitan Prefecture, firmly declined, and was allowed to do so. By then he was already old, yet so devoted in filial piety that he wore himself to emaciation in mourning; scholars admired this as hard to match. The next year an edict urgently ordered him to take up his post at Yangzhou. He returned as Director of the Court of Judicial Review, was enfeoffed as Baron of Jincheng, and replaced Cui Yinpu as Censor-in-Chief. Because of his long-standing reputation, whenever the post of censor-in-chief fell vacant the realm expected Chaoyin to receive it. Once in office, however, he no longer pressed broad principles but gave priority to minor matters, and his reputation waned somewhat. Promoted to Grand Master of Ceremonials, he was sent out as Pacification and Disposition Commissioner for Lingnan and concurrently administered Guangzhou. He died in office, was posthumously made Minister of Personnel, and the government provided a cart and coffin for his return north; his posthumous name was Zhen, Upright.

王丘，字仲山，同交從子也。父同至，終太子左庶子。丘十一擢童子科，它童皆專經，而獨屬文，由是知名。及冠，舉制科中第，授奉禮郎。氣象清古，行修絜，於詞賦尤高。族人方慶及魏元忠更薦之，自偃師主簿擢監察御史。

Wang Qiu, courtesy name Zhongshan, was a younger cousin within the clan. His father Tongzhi ended his career as Left Vice Mentor of the Heir Apparent. At eleven Wang Qiu passed the child prodigy examination; the other boys all focused on the classics while he alone excelled at literary composition, and from that he became well known. When he came of age he passed a decree examination and was appointed Gentleman for Ceremonial Duties. His bearing was clear and dignified, his conduct refined and pure, and he was especially accomplished in fu and rhapsody. His clansman Wang Fangqing and Wei Yuanzhong repeatedly recommended him, and he rose from Magistrate of Yanshi to Investigating Censor.

開元初，遷考功員外郎。考功異時多請托，進者濫冒，歲數百人。丘務核實材，登科才滿百，議者謂自武後至是數十年，采錄精明無丘比。其後席豫、嚴挺之亦有稱，然出丘下。遷紫微舍人、吏部侍郎，典選，復號平允。其獎用如山陰尉孫逖、桃林尉張鏡微、湖城尉張晉明、進士王泠然，皆一時茂秀。久之，為黃門侍郎。

Early in the Kaiyuan era he became Vice Director in the Department of Merit. The Department of Merit had long been subject to patronage; unqualified candidates passed in the hundreds every year. Qiu insisted on verifying real talent; fewer than a hundred passed that year, and commentators said that in the decades since Empress Wu's time no selection had been as sharp and exacting as his. Later Xi Yu and Yan Tingzhi also won praise, but neither matched Qiu. He was promoted to Drafter at the Palace Library and Vice Minister of Personnel; put in charge of selection, he again became known for fairness. Those he promoted and employed—including Sun Ti, magistrate of Shan'yin; Zhang Jingwei, magistrate of Taolin; Zhang Jinming, magistrate of Hucheng; and jinshi graduate Wang Lingran—were all brilliant men of their generation. After some time he was appointed Vice Director of the Chancellery.

會山東旱饑，議以中朝臣為刺史，制詔：「臯陶稱：『在知人，在安民。』皆念存邦本，朝乾夕惕，無忘一日。今長吏或未稱，蒼生謂何？深思循良，以革頹敝，宜重刺史之選，自朝廷始。」乃以丘與中書付郎崔沔等並為山東刺史。而丘守懷州，尤清嚴，為下畏慕。入知吏部選，改尚書左丞，以父喪解。服除，為右散騎常侍，仍知制誥。裴光庭卒，蕭嵩與丘善，將引與當國，丘固辭，盛推韓休行能。及休秉政，薦為御史大夫。丘訥於言，所白奏帝多不喜，改太子賓客，襲父封。以疾徙禮部尚書，致仕。

When Shandong suffered drought and famine, the court decided to send central officials out as prefects; an edict declared: 「Gao Yao said: 『In knowing men and in settling the people 』lie the foundations of the state. Morning and evening be diligent and watchful, and never forget this for a single day. If the local chiefs are unworthy, what will the common people do? Think deeply on good and honest officials to reform decay and neglect; the choice of prefects should be taken seriously, beginning here at court. 」Thereupon Wang Qiu, together with Cui Hao, Vice Director of the Secretariat, and others were all appointed prefects in Shandong. Wang Qiu governed Huaizhou with especial clarity and severity; those under him both feared and admired him. Recalled to oversee personnel selection in the Ministry of Personnel, he was made Left Assistant Director of the Department of State Affairs, then left office when his father died. When mourning ended he was appointed Right Regular Attendant and continued to draft imperial edicts. When Pei Guangting died, Xiao Song, who was close to Wang Qiu, intended to bring him into power to run the government. Qiu firmly refused and instead strongly recommended Han Xiu's ability. Once Han Xiu came to power, he recommended Qiu for the post of Censor-in-Chief. Wang Qiu was reticent in speech, and the Emperor often disliked the memorials he submitted. He was reassigned as Mentor of the Crown Prince and inherited his father's noble title. Because of illness he was moved to the post of Minister of Rites and then retired from office.

丘更履華劇，而所守清約，未嘗通饋遺，室宅童騎敝陋，既老，藥餌不自給。帝嘆之，以謂有古人節，下制給全祿以旌絜吏。天寶二年卒，贈荊州大都督，謚曰文。

Though Wang Qiu rose to ever more exalted and demanding offices, he lived by strict frugality and never accepted gifts. His home, servants, and horses were plain and worn, and in his old age he could scarcely afford his own medicine. The Emperor sighed and said that Qiu possessed the integrity of men of old. He issued an edict granting him full salary in recognition of an incorrupt official. He died in the second year of Tianbao. He was posthumously enfeoffed as Grand Protector-General of Jingzhou and given the posthumous name Wen.

嚴挺之，名浚，以字行，華州華陰人。少好學，姿質軒秀。舉進士，並擢制科，調義興尉，號材吏。姚崇為州刺史，異之。崇執政，引為右拾遺。

Yan Tingzhi, whose personal name was Jun but who was known by his courtesy name, was a native of Huayin in Hua Prefecture. From youth he loved learning, and his bearing and appearance were strikingly handsome. He passed the jinshi examination and was also selected through the decree examination. Appointed magistrate of Yixing, he was known as a capable official. When Yao Chong served as prefect of the province, he took special notice of him. Once Yao Chong came to power, he brought him in as Right Reminder.

侍御史任正名恃風憲，至廷中責詈衣冠，挺之讓其不敬，反為所劾，貶萬州員外參軍事。開元中，為考功員外郎，累進給事中，典貢舉，時號平允。會杜暹、李元纮為相，不相中。暹善挺之，而元纮善宋遙，用為中書舍人。遙校吏部判，取舍與挺之異，言於元纮，元纮屢詰譙，挺之厲言曰：「公位相國，而愛憎反任小人乎？」元纮曰：「小人為誰？」曰：「宋遙也。」由是出為登州刺史，改太原少尹。

Attending Censor Ren Zhengming abused his disciplinary authority, going into court to berate officials in their robes and caps. Tingzhi rebuked him for disrespect, but Ren impeached him in return, and he was demoted to supernumerary staff member at Wanzhou. During the Kaiyuan era he served as Vice Director in the Department of Merit, rose through successive promotions to Attendant-in-Ordinary, and oversaw the civil examinations. At the time he was known for fairness. When Du Xuan and Li Yuanhong served together as chancellors, the two did not get along. Du Xuan favored Tingzhi, while Li Yuanhong favored Song Yao. Tingzhi was appointed Drafting Secretary in the Secretariat. Song Yao reviewed the Ministry of Personnel decisions, and his choices differed from Tingzhi's. He reported this to Li Yuanhong, who repeatedly questioned and berated Tingzhi. Tingzhi spoke sharply: 「You hold the rank of chief minister—do you really let your likes and dislikes be decided by petty men? 」Li Yuanhong asked, 「Who is the petty man? 」He answered, 「Song Yao. 」Because of this he was sent out as Prefect of Dengzhou and later transferred to Vice Governor of Taiyuan.

初，殿中監王毛仲持節抵太原朔方籍兵馬，後累年，仍移太原取兵仗，挺之不肯應，且以毛仲寵幸，久恐有變，密啟於帝。俄改濮、汴二州刺史，所治皆嚴威，吏至重足脅息。會毛仲敗死，帝以挺之言忠，召為刑部侍郎，遷太府卿。

Earlier, Wang Maozhong, Director of the Palace Domestic Service, had come with imperial credentials to Taiyuan and Shuofang to register troops and horses. Years later he still came to Taiyuan to demand weapons and armor. Tingzhi refused to comply. Fearing that Maozhong's long-held favor might one day lead to trouble, he secretly reported the matter to the Emperor. Before long he was transferred to serve as prefect of Pu and Bian. His rule in both places was strict and severe, and officials were so intimidated that they walked on tiptoe and hardly dared breathe. When Maozhong fell from power and died, the Emperor regarded Tingzhi's earlier report as loyal and recalled him as Vice Minister of Justice, then promoted him to Director of the Court of the Imperial Treasury.

宰相張九齡雅知之，用為尚書左丞，知吏部選。李林甫與九齡同輔政，以九齡方得君，諂事之，內實不善也。戶部侍郎蕭炅，林甫所引，不知書，嘗與挺之言，稱蒸嘗伏臘，乃為「伏獵」。挺之白九齡：「省中而有伏獵侍郎乎！」乃出炅岐州刺史，林甫恨之。九齡欲引以輔政，使往謁林甫，挺之負正，陋其為人，凡三年，非公事不造也，林甫益怨。會挺之有所諉於蔚州刺史王元琰，林甫使人暴其語禁中，下除洺州刺史，徙絳州。

Chancellor Zhang Jiuling had long known and respected him. He appointed him Left Assistant Director of the Department of State Affairs and put him in charge of personnel selection. Li Linfu served alongside Zhang Jiuling as co-regent. Because Jiuling had only recently won the Emperor's favor, Linfu flattered him outwardly while inwardly disliking him. Vice Minister of Revenue Xiao Jiong, a man Li Linfu had promoted, was illiterate. Once, speaking with Tingzhi, he meant to refer to sacrificial offerings at the seasonal festivals of Fuxi and La, but said 「crouching hunt」 instead. Tingzhi reported to Zhang Jiuling, 「Can the Secretariat really have a 'Crouching-Hunt' vice minister? 」Xiao Jiong was then sent out as Prefect of Qizhou, and Li Linfu resented Tingzhi for it. Zhang Jiuling wanted to bring Tingzhi into the inner circle of government and had him go pay a visit to Li Linfu. Tingzhi was upright by nature and despised Linfu's character. For three years he never called on Linfu except on official business, and Linfu's resentment only deepened. When Tingzhi had a grievance against Wang Yuanyan, prefect of Wei Prefecture, Li Linfu had his words exposed inside the palace. Tingzhi was demoted to Prefect of Mingzhou and then transferred to Jiang Prefecture.

天寶初，帝顧林甫曰：「嚴挺之安在？此其材可用。」林甫退召其弟損之與道舊，諄諄款曲，且許美官，因曰：「天子視絳州厚，要當以事自解歸，得見上，且大用。」因紿挺之使稱疾，願就醫京師。林甫已得奏，即言挺之春秋高，有疾，幸閑官得自養。帝恨咤久之，乃以為員外詹事，詔歸東都。挺之郁郁成疾，乃自為文誌墓，遺令薄葬，斂以時服。

Early in the Tianbao era the Emperor turned to Li Linfu and asked, 「Where is Yan Tingzhi? His talent is still worth using. 」Li Linfu withdrew and summoned his younger brother Sun Zhi to reminisce with him, speaking warmly and at length and promising him a fine office. Then he said, 「The Son of Heaven thinks highly of your service in Jiang Prefecture. You should resolve your affairs there, return home, see the Emperor, and then you will be greatly promoted. 」He then tricked Tingzhi into reporting illness and asking to go to the capital for medical treatment. Li Linfu had already received the memorial and immediately reported that Tingzhi was old and ill and would be better off with an idle post where he could recuperate. The Emperor fumed for a long time, then appointed Tingzhi Supernumerary Household Tutor and ordered him back to the Eastern Capital. Tingzhi grew despondent and fell ill. He wrote his own epitaph, left instructions for a simple burial, and directed that he be laid out in everyday clothes.

挺之重交遊，許與生死不易，嫁故人孤女數十人，當時重之。然溺誌於佛，與浮屠惠義善，義卒，衰服送其喪，已乃自葬於其塔左，君子以為偏。子武。

Tingzhi valued friendship deeply. He pledged bonds that would not change in life or death and saw dozens of orphaned daughters of old friends married off. People of the time greatly respected him for this. Yet he was obsessed with Buddhism and was close to the monk Huiyi. When Huiyi died, Tingzhi wore mourning and attended his funeral, then arranged to be buried beside the left side of Huiyi's pagoda. Men of principle thought this excessive. His son was Yan Wu.

武，字季鷹。幼豪爽。母裴不為挺之所答，獨厚其妾英。武始八歲，怪問其母，母語之故。武奮然以鐵錘就英寢，碎其首。左右驚白挺之曰：「郎戲殺英。」武辭曰：「安有大臣厚妾而薄妻者，兒故殺之，非戲也。」父奇之，曰：「真嚴挺之子！」然數禁敕。武讀書不甚究其義，以蔭調太原府參軍事，累遷殿中侍御史。從玄宗入蜀，擢諫議大夫。至德初，赴肅宗行在，房琯以其名臣子，薦為給事中。已收長安，拜京兆少尹。坐琯事貶巴州刺史。久之，遷東川節度使。上皇合劍南為一道，擢武成都尹、劍南節度使。還，拜京兆尹，為二聖山陵橋道使，封鄭國公。遷黃門侍郎。與元載厚相結，求宰相不遂，復節度劍南。破吐藩七萬眾於當狗城，遂收鹽川。加檢校吏部尚書。

Wu, courtesy name Jiying. From childhood he was bold and open-handed. His mother, Lady Pei, was neglected by Tingzhi, who favored only his concubine Ying. When Wu was only eight years old, he asked his mother about it in puzzlement, and she told him why. Wu seized an iron hammer, went to Ying's bedchamber in a fury, and smashed her skull. Those around him rushed to tell Tingzhi in alarm, 「The young master killed Ying in play. 」Wu answered, 「How can a great minister favor a concubine and neglect his wife? I killed her on purpose—it was no accident. 」His father was astonished and said, 「A true son of Yan Tingzhi! 」Even so, he repeatedly forbade and admonished him. Wu did not study books deeply enough to grasp their meaning. Through hereditary privilege he entered service as a staff member in the Taiyuan prefecture and rose step by step to Attending Palace Censor. When he followed Emperor Xuanzong into Shu, he was promoted to Remonstrance Grand Master. At the beginning of the Zhide era he went to Emperor Suzong's mobile court. Fang Guan, considering him the son of a famous minister, recommended him for the post of Attendant-in-Ordinary. Once Chang'an had been recovered, he was appointed Vice Governor of the Capital District. Because of Fang Guan's disgrace he was demoted to Prefect of Bazhou. After some time he was transferred to Military Governor of Dongchuan. The Retired Emperor merged Jiannan into a single circuit and promoted Wu to Governor of Chengdu and Military Governor of Jiannan. On his return he was appointed Governor of the Capital District, made Commissioner for the Bridge Roads of the Two Sages' Imperial Tombs, and enfeoffed as Duke of Zheng. He was promoted to Vice Director of the Chancellery. He formed a close alliance with Yuan Zai. When his bid for the chancellorship failed, he returned to serve again as military governor of Jiannan. He defeated seventy thousand Tibetan troops at Dangou Fort and then recovered Yanchuan. He was additionally appointed Acting Minister of Personnel.

武在蜀頗放肆，用度無藝，或一言之悅，賞至百萬。蜀雖號富饒，而峻掊亟斂，閭裏為空，然虜亦不敢近境。梓州刺史章彜始為武判官，因小忿殺之。琯以故宰相為巡內刺史，武慢倨不為禮。最厚杜甫，然欲殺甫數矣。李白為《蜀道難》者，乃為房與杜危之也。永泰初卒，母哭，且曰：「而今而後，吾知免為官婢矣。」年四十，贈尚書左僕射。

In Shu, Wu was quite unrestrained. His spending knew no bounds, and sometimes a single pleasing remark would earn a reward of as much as a million cash. Although Shu was known as rich and fertile, he taxed it harshly and relentlessly until whole neighborhoods were drained empty. Even so, the enemy did not dare approach the border. Zhang Yi, prefect of Zizhou, had once served as Wu's aide. Over a minor quarrel Wu had him killed. Fang Guan, a former chancellor, came as an itinerant inspector within the circuit, but Wu treated him with arrogant disrespect. He was closest to Du Fu, yet more than once he wanted to kill him. Li Bai wrote 「Hard Road to Shu」 to warn Fang Guan and Du Fu of the danger they faced. He died at the beginning of the Yongtai era. His mother wept and said, 「From now on I know I am spared becoming a government maidservant. 」He was forty years old. He was posthumously appointed Left Vice Director of the Department of State Affairs.

挺之從孫綬。綬父丹，嘗為劍南鹽鐵、青苗、租庸使，以武在蜀，辭不拜。綬擢進士第，以侍御史副劉贊為宣歙團練使。贊卒，綬總留事，悉庫物以獻，召為刑部員外郎。賓佐進奉由綬始。

Tingzhi's collateral grandson was Yan Shou. Shou's father Dan had once been appointed Commissioner for Salt and Iron, Green Sprouts, and Tax Corvée in Jiannan, but because Yan Wu was in Shu he declined the post and never took it up. Shou passed the jinshi examination and served as Attending Censor under Liu Zan, Regiment Training Commissioner of Xuan-She. When Liu Zan died, Shou took charge of affairs and sent all the treasury goods to the court as tribute. He was then recalled and appointed Vice Director in the Ministry of Justice. The practice of staff members sending tribute to the throne began with Shou.

河東節度使李說病，軍司馬鄭儋總其政，說卒，代為節度。時德宗務姑息，方鎮若帥死，不它命，即用軍司馬代之，以和厭眾情。至是，帝頗憶綬所獻，故擢為河東司馬。明年，儋卒，即檢校工部尚書，代其使。憲宗立，楊惠琳反夏州，劉辟反蜀，綬建言：「天子始即位，不可失威，請必誅。」選銳兵，遣大將李光顏助討賊。二賊平，檢校尚書左僕射，封扶風郡公，進司空。在鎮九年，尚寬惠，治稱流聞，士馬孳息。嘗大閱，旗幟周七十里，回鶻梅錄將軍在會，聞金鼓震伏。入為尚書右僕射。

Li Shuo, Military Governor of Hedong, fell ill, and Army Vice Commissioner Zheng Dan took over the administration. When Shuo died, Dan succeeded him as military governor. At that time Emperor Dezong pursued a conciliatory policy toward the frontier. When a military governor died, the court often made no other appointment but simply let the army vice commissioner succeed him, so as to appease the troops. On this occasion the Emperor still remembered Shou's earlier tribute and therefore promoted him to Army Vice Commissioner of Hedong. The next year, when Zheng Dan died, Shou was immediately appointed Acting Minister of Works and succeeded him as military governor. When Emperor Xianzong took the throne, Yang Huilin rebelled at Xia Prefecture and Liu Bi rebelled in Shu. Shou advised, 「The Son of Heaven has just ascended the throne and cannot afford to lose authority. I ask that they be put to death without fail. 」He selected crack troops and sent the great general Li Guangyan to help suppress the rebels. After both rebellions were put down, he was appointed Acting Left Vice Director of the Department of State Affairs, enfeoffed as Duke of Fufeng Commandery, and promoted to Grand Preceptor. He remained at his post for nine years, governing with generosity and mildness. His reputation spread widely, and both troops and horses increased in number. Once, during a grand review, banners and flags stretched for seventy li around the field. The Uyghur Meilu General was present, and when he heard the thunder of drums and gongs he trembled and cowered. He was recalled to court as Right Vice Director of the Department of State Affairs.

綬既名胄，於吏事有方略，然銳進趣，素議薄之。始就廊下食，在百官上，帝使中人賜含桃，綬見拜之，為御史劾奏，綬慚懼待罪，詔釋綬而貶中人。出為荊南節度使，封鄭國公。

Shou came from a distinguished family and handled administrative affairs with skill, but he was eager to advance, and public opinion had long looked down on him. Just as he began eating in the corridor, seated above the other officials, the Emperor sent a eunuch to grant him cherries. Shou saw this and bowed to the eunuch. A censor impeached him. Shou, ashamed and afraid, awaited punishment. An edict pardoned Shou and demoted the eunuch instead. He was sent out as Military Governor of Jingnan and enfeoffed as Duke of Zheng.

漵州蠻張伯靖殺吏，據辰、錦州，連九洞自固，詔綬進討。綬勒兵出次，遣將賫檄開曉，群蠻悉降。吳元濟反，僉以綬明恕可大事，乃徙山南東道節度使，加淮西招撫使。綬引師壓賊境，多出金帛賞士，以厚賂謝中人，招聲援，既未有以制賊，閉屯彌年不戰。宰相裴度謂綬非將才，以太子少保召還，檢校司徒，判光祿卿事，進少傅。卒，年七十七，贈太保。

Zhang Bojing, a tribal leader of Xuzhou, killed officials and seized Chen and Jin prefectures, linking nine cave settlements to hold his ground. An edict ordered Shou to advance against him. Shou marshaled his troops and moved out to encamp, then sent a general with proclamations to explain the court's will. All the tribal groups submitted. When Wu Yuanji rebelled, everyone agreed that Shou's mild and forgiving manner suited a major pacification effort. He was transferred to Military Governor of Shannan East Circuit and additionally made Pacification Commissioner of Huai West. Shou led his army up to the rebel border, lavished gold and silk on his soldiers, and gave heavy bribes to eunuchs to win their public support. Yet he had no effective way to defeat the rebels and kept his camp closed for a full year without fighting. Chancellor Pei Du said Shou lacked the talent of a general. He was recalled as Junior Tutor of the Crown Prince, appointed Acting Minister of Education, assigned the duties of Director of the Court of Imperial Entertainments, and promoted to Junior Mentor. He died at the age of seventy-seven and was posthumously appointed Grand Tutor.

綬才不逾中人，然歷三鎮，所奏辟及綬時位將相者九人。初，綬未顯，過於闅鄉尉李達，達不禮，方飯它客，不召綬。後達罷彭城令，過并州，晨入謁，不知綬也。綬方大宴賓客，召達至，戒客勿起，讓曰：「吾昔羈旅闅鄉，君方召客食而不顧我，今我召客亦不敢留君。」達慚，不得去，左右引出，悸而瘖，臥館數月，其佐令狐楚為請，乃免。

Shou's talent was no more than middling, yet over three military postings the men he recommended and recruited included nine who later rose to chancellor or general. Before Shou had risen to prominence, he once passed the home of Li Da, magistrate of Weixiang. Da treated him discourteously: he was entertaining other guests and did not invite Shou to join them. Later, after Da had left office as magistrate of Pengcheng, he passed through Bingzhou and came early in the morning to pay his respects, not realizing that the man he was calling on was Shou. Shou was holding a grand banquet for his guests. He summoned Da forward, told the guests not to rise, and reproached him: 「When I was a stranded traveler in Weixiang, you were entertaining guests and paid no attention to me. Now that I am entertaining guests, I likewise dare not keep you. 」Da was ashamed but could not leave. Attendants led him out. He was so frightened that he lost his voice and lay bedridden in the guest lodge for months. His aide Linghu Chu pleaded for him, and only then was he spared further punishment.

河東李進賢者，善畜牧，家高貲，得幸於綬，署牙門將。元和中，進賢累為振武節度使，辟綬子澈為判官。澈年少，治苛刻，軍中苦之。回鶻入辟鵜泉，進賢發兵討之，吏廩糧不實，次鳴砂，焚殺其將楊遵憲而還。進賢大怒，眾懼，因燔城門，攻進賢，左右拒戰不勝，縋而去，奔靖邊軍。乃殺澈而屠進賢家。詔以夏綏銀節度使張煦代之，誅亂首數百人乃定。

There was a man of Hedong named Li Jinxian, skilled in animal husbandry and from a wealthy family. Favored by Shou, he was appointed Gate General. During the Yuanhe era Li Jinxian served repeatedly as Military Governor of Zhenwu and recruited Shou's son Che as his aide. Che was still young, and his rule was harsh and exacting; the troops found him unbearable. When the Uyghurs raided Bipiquan, Jinxian mobilized troops against them. The commissary grain turned out short of what had been reported; he camped at Mingsha, executed his general Yang Zunxian by fire, and withdrew. Jinxian flew into a rage, and the men were terrified. They burned the city gate and turned on him. His guards fought back but were beaten; he was lowered over the wall by rope and escaped to the Jingbian garrison. They then killed Che and massacred everyone in Jinxian's family. An edict sent Zhang Xu, Military Governor of Xia-Sui-Yin, to replace him; once several hundred ringleaders of the revolt had been executed, the region was pacified.

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