Volume 135 Biographies 60: Ge Shu Han and son: Yao, Gao Xianzhi, Feng Changqing

哥舒翰子:曜高仙芝封常清

Ge Shu Han and His Son Yao; Gao Xianzhi; Feng Changqing

哥舒翰

Ge Shu Han

哥舒翰，其先蓋突騎施酋長哥舒部之裔。父道元，為安西都護將軍、赤水軍使，故仍世居安西。翰少補效轂府果毅，家富於財，任俠重然諾，縱蒱酒長安市。年四十餘，遭父喪，不歸。不為長安尉所禮，慨然發憤，遊河西，事節度使王倕。倕攻新城，使翰經略，稍知名。又事王忠嗣，署衙將。翰能讀《左氏春秋》、《漢書》，通大義。疏財，多施予，故士歸心。為大鬥軍副使，佐安思順，不相下。忠嗣更使討吐蕃，副將倨見，翰怒，立殺之，麾下為股抃。遷左衛郎將。

Ge Shu Han's forebears were likely descendants of the Ge Shu branch of the Turgesh chieftains. His father Daoyuan held the posts of Protectorate General of Anxi and commissioner of the Chishui Army, and the family had long resided in Anxi. In youth Han entered service as a guoyi of the Xiaogu Prefecture. His family was rich, he lived by the code of the knight-errant and held his promises sacred, and he spent his days gambling and drinking in Chang'an. After he passed forty, his father died, and he did not go home for the mourning. Snubbed by the magistrate of Chang'an, he burned with humiliation, went west to Hexi, and took service under Military Commissioner Wang Chui. When Chui attacked Xincheng, he put Han in charge of the campaign, and Han's name slowly spread. He later entered the service of Wang Zhongsi and was appointed a yamen general. Han could read the Zuo Commentary and the Book of Han and understood their broader import. Generous with his money and liberal in his gifts, he won the loyalty of the men under him. As deputy commissioner of the Dadou Army under An Sishun, he and his superior were constantly at odds. When Zhongsi sent him against the Tibetans again, a deputy general treated him with insolence. Han flew into a rage and executed him at once, and his soldiers slapped their thighs in delight. He was promoted to captain of the Left Guard.

吐蕃盜邊，與翰遇苦拔海。吐蕃枝其軍為三行，從山差池下，翰持半段槍迎擊，所向輒披靡，名蓋軍中。擢授右武衛將軍，副隴右節度，為河源軍使。先是，吐蕃候積石軍麥熟，歲來取，莫能禁。翰乃使王難得、楊景暉設伏東南穀。吐蕃以五千騎入塞，放馬褫甲，將就田，翰自城中馳至鏖鬥，虜駭走，追北，伏起，悉殺之，只馬無還者。翰嘗逐虜，馬驚，陷於河，吐蕃三將欲刺翰，翰大呼，皆擁矛不敢動，救兵至，追殺之。翰有奴曰左車，年十六，以膂力聞。翰工用槍，追及賊，擬槍於肩，叱之，賊反顧，翰刺其喉，剔而騰之，高五尺許，乃墮，左車即下馬斬其首，以為常。

When Tibetans raided the border, they met Han at Kuba Sea. The Tibetans split their force into three columns and descended the slopes in uneven ranks. Han met them wielding a shortened spear, and wherever he turned the enemy lines crumbled; his renown spread through the whole army. He was promoted to General of the Right Martial Guard, made deputy military commissioner of Longyou, and appointed commissioner of the Heyuan Army. Before this, the Tibetans had timed their raids to the ripening of the wheat at Jishi Army and came each year to carry it off, and no one could prevent them. Han then had Wang Nande and Yang Jinghui lay an ambush in the southeastern ravine. Five thousand Tibetan horsemen crossed the border, turned their mounts loose, and stripped off their armor to go harvesting. Han galloped out from the fort to join the fight. The enemy fled in panic; he pursued them north until the ambush closed in and wiped them out — not one horse made it back. Once, while pursuing the enemy, Han's horse bolted and he fell into a river. Three Tibetan officers moved to spear him, but Han roared so fiercely that they froze with their weapons raised. When reinforcements arrived, the pursuers were cut down. Han kept a slave named Zuoche, sixteen years old and renowned for his brute strength. Han was a master of the spear. When he overtook a foe, he would level the weapon on his shoulder and shout; as the man turned, Han drove the point into his throat, hoisted him five feet into the air on the shaft, then let him fall. Zuoche would dismount at once and take the head — a routine they performed again and again.

會忠嗣被罪，帝召翰入朝，部將請齎金帛以救忠嗣，翰但齎樸裝，曰：「使吾計從，奚取於是？不行，用此足矣。」翰至，帝虛心待，與語，異之，拜鴻臚卿，為隴右節度副大使。翰已謝，即極言忠嗣之枉。帝起入禁中，翰叩頭從帝，且泣。帝寤，為末貸其罪，忠嗣不及誅。朝廷稱其義。

When Zhongsi was charged with a crime, the emperor summoned Han to court. His officers urged him to bring gold and silk to ransom Zhongsi, but Han took only plain clothes and said, "If my plan works, what need have I of such things? If it fails, this is enough. When Han arrived, the emperor received him without reserve, spoke with him at length, and was struck by the man. Han was appointed Minister of Ceremonial and deputy grand commissioner of Longyou. Once the audience was over, Han immediately pleaded at length that Zhongsi had been wronged. The emperor rose and withdrew into the inner palace. Han kowtowed and followed him, weeping as he went. The emperor relented and finally commuted Zhongsi's sentence, and Zhongsi was spared execution. The court praised him for his loyalty and righteousness.

逾年，築神威軍青海上，吐蕃攻破之。更築于龍駒島，有白龍見，因號應龍城。翰相其川原宜畜牧，謫罪人二千戍之，由是吐蕃不敢近青海。天寶八載，詔翰以朔方、河東群牧兵十萬攻吐蕃石堡城。數日未克，翰怒，捽其將高秀岩、張守瑜，將斬之。秀岩請三日期，如期而下。遂以赤嶺為西塞，開屯田，備軍實。加特進，賜賚彌渥。十一載，加開府儀同三司。

The following year he built the Shenwei Army on the Qinghai, but the Tibetans overran and destroyed it. He rebuilt on Dragon Colt Island, where a white dragon was seen, and the post was therefore named Fortress of the Responding Dragon. Han found the rivers and plains there well suited to grazing, posted two thousand convicts in exile to garrison the place, and thereafter the Tibetans no longer dared come near Qinghai. In the eighth year of Tianbao, the emperor ordered Han to lead one hundred thousand herd-troop soldiers from Shuofang and Hedong against the Tibetan stronghold of Shibao. After several days the city had not fallen. Han in a fury seized his generals Gao Xiuyan and Zhang Shouyu and prepared to execute them. Xiuyan begged for three days, and on the deadline the fortress fell. He then made Chiling the western frontier barrier, opened military colonies, and built up stores for the army. He received the rank of special advancement, and the emperor's gifts grew ever more generous. In the eleventh year he was further granted the rank of Grand Preceptor with ceremonial privileges equal to the Three Excellencies.

翰素與安祿山、安思順不平，帝每欲和解之。會三人俱來朝，帝使驃騎大將軍高力士宴城東，翰等皆集。詔尚食生擊鹿，取血瀹腸為熱洛河以賜之。翰母，于闐王女也。祿山謂翰曰：「我父胡，母突厥；公父突厥，母胡。族類本同，安得不親愛？」翰曰：「諺言'狐向窟嗥，不祥'，以忘本也。兄既見愛，敢不盡心。」祿山以翰譏其胡，怒駡曰：「突厥敢爾！」翰欲應之，力士目翰，翰托醉去。

Han had long been at odds with An Lushan and An Sishun, and the emperor often tried to reconcile them. When all three arrived at court together, the emperor had Flying-Cavalry Grand General Gao Lishi host a banquet east of the city, and Han and the others all attended. By edict the Imperial Kitchen slaughtered a deer alive, drew its blood, and boiled the intestines into a dish called Hot River of Luo, which was served to the guests. Han's mother was a daughter of the king of Khotan. Lushan said to Han, "My father was a Hu and my mother a Turk; your father was a Turk and your mother a Hu. Our blood is the same — how can we not be kin?" Han replied, "There is a saying: 'When a fox howls toward its burrow, it is an ill omen' — it means one has forgotten where he came from. Since you show me affection, elder brother, how could I not serve you with all my heart?" Lushan, stung by Han's jibe about his Hu blood, cursed in fury, "You Turk — how dare you!" Han started to answer in kind, but Lishi caught his eye. Han pretended to be drunk and left.

久之，進封涼國公，兼河西節度使。攻破吐蕃洪濟、大莫門等城，收黃河九曲，以其地置洮陽郡，築神策、宛秀二軍。進封西平郡王，賜音樂、田園，又賜一子五品官，裨將賞拜有差。宰相楊國忠惡祿山，白髮其反狀，故厚結翰。俄進太子少保。翰耆酒，極聲色，因風痹，體不仁。既疾廢，遂還京師，闔門不朝請。

In time he was promoted and enfeoffed as Duke of Liang, and also appointed military commissioner of Hexi. He captured the Tibetan cities of Hongji, Damen, and others, recovered the nine bends of the Yellow River, established Taoyang Commandery on the conquered land, and built the Shence and Wansiu garrisons. He was further enfeoffed as Prince of Xiping Commandery and given musicians and estates; one of his sons received a fifth-rank post, and his subordinate generals were rewarded and promoted according to merit. Chief Minister Yang Guozhong despised Lushan and had already warned the emperor of his rebellious intent, so he cultivated a close alliance with Han. Before long he was promoted to Junior Guardian of the Heir Apparent. Han was devoted to wine and pursued music and women to excess; rheumatism left his limbs numb and without feeling. When illness left him incapacitated, he returned to the capital, shut his gates, and ceased attending court.

十四載，祿山反，封常清以王師敗。帝乃召見翰，拜太子先鋒兵馬元帥，以田良丘為軍司馬，蕭昕為判官，王思禮、鉗耳大福、李承光、高元蕩、蘇法鼎、管崇嗣為屬將，火拔歸仁、李武定、渾萼、契苾寧以本部隸麾下，凡河、隴、朔方、奴刺等十二部兵二十萬守潼關。師始東，先驅牙旗觸門，墮注旄，幹折，眾惡之。天子禦勤政樓臨送，詔翰以軍行，過門毋下，百官郊餞，旌旗亙二百里。翰惶恐，數以疾自言，帝不聽。然病痼不能事，以軍政委良丘，使王思禮主騎，李承光主步。三人爭長，政令無所統一，眾攜弛，無鬥意。明年，進拜尚書左僕射、同中書門下平章事。祿山遣子慶緒攻關，翰擊走之。

In the fourteenth year Lushan rose in rebellion, and Feng Changqing was beaten by the imperial forces. The emperor then summoned Han, made him Grand Marshal of the Heir Apparent's Vanguard Army, appointed Tian Liangqiu army secretary and Xiao Xin judge-advocate, and named Wang Sili, Qian'er Dafu, Li Chengguang, Gao Yuandang, Su Fading, and Guan Chongsi as staff generals. Huoba Guiren, Li Wuding, Hun'e, and Qibi Ning brought their tribal contingents under his banner. In all, two hundred thousand men from twelve commands — He, Long, Shuofang, Nuci, and others — were to hold Tong Pass. As the army first marched east, the vanguard's command pennant struck the gate, the tasseled banner fell, and the shaft snapped — an omen the troops took as evil. The emperor himself went to the Qinzheng Tower to see them off, decreed that Han need not dismount when the army passed through the gates, and the whole bureaucracy escorted them beyond the city. Banners and standards lined the road for two hundred li. Han was terrified and repeatedly pleaded his illness, but the emperor would not hear of it. But his chronic illness left him unable to command. He delegated military affairs to Liangqiu, put Wang Sili in charge of the cavalry, and Li Chengguang in charge of the infantry. The three men jockeyed for authority, orders went out from no single hand, the ranks grew slack, and the army lost its will to fight. The following year he was promoted to Left Vice Director of the Department of State Affairs and made a co-signer of the Secretariat and Chancellery. Lushan sent his son Qingxu to assault the pass, and Han repulsed him.

始，安思順度祿山必反，嘗為帝言，得不坐。翰既惡祿山，又怨思順。及是，知重兵在己，有所論請，天子重違，因偽為賊書遺思順者，使關邏禽以獻。翰因疏七罪，請誅之。有詔思順及弟元貞皆賜死，徙放其家。國忠始懼。或說翰曰：「祿山本以誅國忠故稱兵，今若留卒三萬守關，悉精銳度滻水誅君側，此漢挫七國計也。」思禮亦勸翰。翰猶豫未發，謀頗露。國忠大駭，入見帝曰：「兵法，安不忘危。大兵在潼關而無後殿，萬有一不利，京師危矣。」即募牧兒三千人，日夜訓練，以劍南列將分統之。又募萬人屯灞上，使腹心杜乾運為帥。翰疑圖己，表請乾運兵隸節下，因詭召乾運計事者，至軍，即斬首梟牙門，並其軍。國忠愈恐，謂其子曰：「吾無死所矣！」然翰亦不自安，又謀久不決。數奏言：「祿山雖竊據河朔，不得人心，請持重以敝之，待其離隙，可不血刃而禽。」賊將崔乾祐守陝郡，僕旗鼓，羸師以誘戰。覘者曰：「賊無備，可圖也。」帝信之，詔翰進討。翰報曰：「祿山慣用兵，今始為逆，不能無備，是陰計誘我。賊遠來，利在速戰。王師堅守，毋輕出關，計之上也。且四方兵未集，宜觀事勢，不必速。」

Earlier, An Sishun had foreseen that Lushan would rebel and had warned the emperor, and for that he had escaped punishment. Han hated Lushan and bore a grudge against Sishun as well. Now, knowing the main army was his and that the emperor would hesitate to refuse his requests, he forged a rebel letter addressed to Sishun, had border patrols seize it, and presented it to the throne. Han then submitted a memorial listing seven crimes and asking that Sishun be put to death. An edict condemned Sishun and his younger brother Yuanzhen to death and exiled their families. Guozhong began to fear for himself. Someone urged Han, "Lushan took up arms chiefly to destroy Guozhong. Leave thirty thousand men to hold the pass, cross the Chan with your elite troops, and strike at the court itself — the same stratagem the Han used to crush the Seven Kingdoms." Wang Sili urged the same course. Han wavered and did not move, and word of the plan began to spread. Guozhong was terrified. He went before the emperor and said, "In the art of war, one must never forget danger even in security. The main force sits at Tong Pass with no reserve behind it. If anything goes wrong, the capital itself will be at risk." He immediately recruited three thousand herdboys, drilled them day and night, and put them under rotating command of generals from Jiannan. He also raised ten thousand men and encamped them at Bashang under his trusted follower Du Qianyun. Han suspected a move against him, memorialized to have Qianyun's troops placed under his own command, then summoned Qianyun on a pretext, executed him at the army gate, displayed his head, and absorbed his command. Guozhong grew still more afraid and told his son, "There is nowhere left for me to die!" Yet Han too was ill at ease, and again he deliberated without deciding. He repeatedly memorialized, "Though Lushan holds Hebei, he has not won the people's hearts. Hold fast and wear him down; when cracks appear among them, we can take him without shedding blood." The rebel general Cui Qianyou held Shaan Commandery, furled his banners and drums, and paraded a feeble force to bait Han into battle. Scouts reported, "The rebels are off guard — they can be struck." The emperor believed them and ordered Han to advance and attack. Han replied, "Lushan is a seasoned commander. Having just rebelled, he cannot be unprepared — this is a trap laid to draw us out. The rebels have marched far; their advantage lies in forcing a quick fight. The best course is for the imperial army to stand firm and not leave the pass lightly. Besides, troops from all quarters have not yet gathered. We should watch how matters unfold and need not hurry."

當是時，祿山雖盜河、洛，所過殘殺，人人怨之，淹時月不能進尺寸地。又郭子儀、李光弼兵益進，取常山十數郡。祿山始悔反矣，將還幽州以自固。而國忠計迫，謬說帝趣翰出潼關復陝、洛。時子儀、光弼遙計曰：「翰病且耄，賊素知之，諸軍烏合不足戰。今賊悉銳兵南破宛、洛，而以餘眾守幽州，吾直搗之，覆其巢窟，質叛族以招逆徒，祿山之首可致。若師出潼關，變生京師，天下怠矣。」乃極言請翰固關無出軍。而帝入國忠之言，使使者趣戰，項背相望也。翰窘不知所出。六月，引而東，慟哭出關，次靈寶西原，與乾祐戰。由關門七十里，道險隘，其南薄山，北阻河，賊以數千人先伏險。翰浮舟中流以觀軍，謂乾祐兵寡，易之，促士卒進，道岨無行列。賊乘高頹石下擊，殺士甚眾。翰與良丘登北阜，以軍三萬夾河鳴鼓，思禮等以精卒居前，餘軍十萬次之。乾祐為陣，十十五五，或卻或進，而陌刀五千列陣後。王師視其陣無法，指觀嗤笑，曰：「禽賊乃會食。」

By then, though Lushan had overrun the Yellow and Luo valleys, his path was one of slaughter and ruin, and the people hated him. Months passed and he could not push forward another inch. Meanwhile the armies of Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi advanced and recaptured more than ten commanderies in Changshan. Lushan began to regret the rebellion and planned to withdraw to Youzhou and fortify himself there. But Guozhong, driven by his own desperation, misled the emperor into pressing Han to leave Tong Pass and retake Shaan and Luoyang. From afar Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi counseled, "Han is sick and old, and the rebels know it well. These armies are a hurried assembly and cannot stand battle. The rebels have poured their best troops south against Wan and Luoyang while leaving the rest to hold Youzhou. If we strike directly at their base, overturn their nest, and hold their rebel families hostage to draw the turncoats back, Lushan's head can be taken. If the army leaves Tong Pass, trouble will erupt at the capital and the whole empire will lose heart." They pleaded at length that Han hold the pass and not march out. But the emperor heeded Guozhong instead and sent messenger after messenger to demand battle, their trains passing back to back on the road. Han, trapped, no longer knew what to do. In the sixth month he marched east, weeping as he passed through the gate, and encamped on the western plain of Lingbao to give battle to Cui Qianyou. Seventy li beyond the pass the road grew treacherous, mountains hemming it on the south and the river on the north. The rebels had already hidden several thousand men along the heights. Han rode a boat into midstream to watch his troops, decided Qianyou's force was too small to matter, and pressed the men forward. On the steep track they lost all formation. The rebels hurled stones down from above and slaughtered a great many men. Han and Tian Liangqiu took a hill north of the river and set thirty thousand men drumming on both banks. Wang Sili and the other captains led the elite vanguard; the remaining hundred thousand filed in behind. Qianyou drew up his line in loose clusters of ten and five, feinting retreat and advance, while five thousand men with mo dao blades massed behind the front. The imperial troops, seeing this ragged array, pointed and jeered, "We'll eat once we've bagged the rebels."

及戰，乾祐旗少偃，如欲遁者，王師懈，不為備。伏忽起薄戰，皆奮死鬥。翰以氈蒙馬車，畫龍虎，飾金銀爪目，將駭賊，掎戈矢逐北。賊負薪塞路，順風火其車，熛焱熾突，騰煙如夜，士不復相辨，自相鬥殺，屍血狼籍，久乃悟。又棄甲奔山谷及陷河死者十一二。有糧艘百餘，軍爭濟，艘輒沉，至縛矛盾乘以度，喧叫振天地。賊乘之，奔潰略盡。始，斗門有三塹，廣二丈，深一丈，士馬奔籥相壓迮，少選塹平，後至者踐之以入。

Once the fight began, Qianyou's banners dipped as if he meant to run. The imperial army slackened and dropped its guard. Hidden troops sprang up and closed in; every man fought as if ready to die. Han draped ox carts in felt, painted them with dragons and tigers, and fitted them with gilded claws and eyes to frighten the enemy, then drove forward with spears and arrows in pursuit. The rebels piled brush to choke the road and, with the wind at their backs, torched the carts. Fire leaped up and smoke blotted out the day like night. Men could no longer tell friend from foe and turned on one another; bodies and blood covered the ground before they understood what had happened. Another tenth or so threw off their armor, fled into the ravines, or drowned in the river. More than a hundred grain boats stood ready. Soldiers fought to board them; each boat sank under the crush. Men lashed spears and shields together to raft across, their cries shaking heaven and earth. The rebels pressed the advantage, and the army broke almost to the last man. At Dou Gate three trenches, each twenty feet wide and ten deep, had been dug. Horses and men piled into them in the stampede; within moments the ditches were filled flat, and those behind trampled over the dead to get through.

既敗，翰引數百騎絕河還營，羸兵裁八千，至潼津，收散卒復守關。乾祐進攻，於是火拔歸仁等紿翰出關，翰曰：「何邪？」曰：「公以二十萬眾，一日覆沒，持是安歸？公不見高仙芝等事乎？」翰曰：「吾寧效仙芝死，汝舍我。」歸仁不從，執以降賊，械送洛陽，京師震動，由是天子西幸。祿山見翰責曰：「汝常易我，今何如？」翰俯伏謝罪曰：「陛下撥亂主。今天下未平，李光弼在土門，來瑱在河南，魯炅在南陽，臣為陛下以尺書招之，三面可平。」祿山悅，即署司空、同中書門下平章事。執火拔歸仁，曰：「背主忘義，吾不爾容。」斬之。翰以書招諸將，諸將皆讓翰不死節。祿山知事不可就，囚之。東京平，安慶緒以翰度河。及敗，乃殺之。

After the rout Han crossed the river with a few hundred riders and regrouped. Barely eight thousand weary soldiers remained. At Tong Ford he rallied the stragglers and once more manned the pass. When Qianyou attacked again, Huoba Guiren and others tricked Han into abandoning the pass. Han asked, "What is this?" They said, "You led two hundred thousand men and lost them in one day. Where can you turn now? Have you forgotten what befell Gao Xianzhi and the others?" Han said, "I would rather die as Xianzhi did. Leave me." Guiren refused. He seized Han, surrendered him to the rebels, and sent him in chains to Luoyang. The capital shook with fear, and the emperor fled west. When Lushan saw Han he taunted him: "You always despised me — what do you say now?" Han kowtowed and pleaded, "Your Majesty is the sovereign who will restore order to the realm. The empire is not yet settled. Li Guangbi holds Tumen, Lai Tian is in Henan, and Lu Kui at Nanyang. Let me summon them with a single letter, and three fronts can be pacified at once." Lushan was delighted and at once made him Minister of Works and co-signer of the Secretariat and Chancellery. He then seized Huoba Guiren and said, "You betrayed your master and forgot your duty — I will not pardon you." And had him beheaded. Han wrote to the generals urging them to submit, but every one rebuked him for failing to die with honor. Lushan saw the plan would not work and had him imprisoned. When the Eastern Capital was retaken, An Qingxu had Han brought across the river. When Qingxu in turn was defeated, he had Han executed.

翰為人嚴，少恩。軍行未嘗恤士饑寒，有啗民椹者，痛笞辱之。監軍李大宜在軍中，不治事，與將士樗蒱、飲酒、彈箜篌琵琶為樂，而士米籺不饜。帝令中人袁思藝勞師，士皆訴衣服穿空，帝即斥禦服餘者，制袍十萬以賜其軍，翰藏庫中，及敗，封鐍如故。

Han was a stern man and showed little mercy. On the march he never troubled himself over hunger or cold among the ranks. Any soldier caught eating mulberries from the countryside was flogged and shamed. The army overseer Li Dayi ignored his duties and spent his days gambling, drinking, and playing the konghou and pipa with the officers, while the men went hungry on short rations. The emperor sent the eunuch Yuan Siyi to comfort the troops. The men complained their clothes were in tatters. The emperor at once stripped surplus robes from the palace stores and had one hundred thousand new coats made for the army. Han locked them in the depot; when he was defeated the seals had never been broken.

先是，有客梁慎初遺翰書，請壁勿戰以屈賊，翰善之，奏為左武衛胄曹參軍，留幕府。及翰與國忠貳，慎初曰：「難將作矣。」乃遁去。翰失守，華陰、馮翊、上洛郡官吏皆潰。帝遣劍南將劉光庭等將新募兵萬餘人往助翰，未至而翰被縛雲。其後贈太尉，諡曰武湣。

Earlier a visitor named Liang Shenchu had written urging Han to stand on the defensive and wear the rebels down rather than give battle. Han approved the advice, memorialized to appoint him adjutant of armor and weapons in the Left Martial Guard, and kept him on staff. When Han fell out with Guozhong, Shenchu said, "Trouble is coming." And slipped away. After Han lost the pass, the civil officials of Huayin, Tongzhou, and Shangluo all fled or surrendered. The emperor dispatched Liu Guangting of Jiannan and others with more than ten thousand freshly levied troops to reinforce Han, but before they arrived Han had already been taken prisoner. Later he was posthumously made Grand Marshal and given the posthumous title Wumin.

子曜

His Son Yao

子曜，字子明。八歲，玄宗召見華清宮，擢尚輦奉禦。累遷光祿卿。以翰陷賊，哀憤號慟，故吏裴冕、杜鴻漸等見之歎息。李光弼討河北，曜請行，拜鴻臚卿，為光弼副。降安太清、救宋州有功，改殿中監，襲封，為東都鎮守兵馬使。德宗立，召為左龍武大將軍。李希烈陷汝州，以周晃為偽刺史。詔拜曜東都、汝州行營節度使，將鳳翔、邠甯、涇原、奉天、好畦兵萬人討希烈。帝召見，問曰：「卿治兵孰與父賢？」對曰：「先臣，安敢比。但斬長蛇，殪封豕，然後待罪私室，臣之願也。」帝曰：「爾父在開元時，朝廷無西憂；今朕得卿，亦不東慮。」及行，帝祖通化門。是日，牙幹折。時以翰出師已如此，而斬持旗者，卒以敗，今曜復爾，人憂之。曜擊賊，收汝州，禽晃以獻，斬其將二人。希烈退保許州。詔城襄城，曜以疲人版築不如按甲持重以挫之，帝不許。有詔督戰。曜進次潁橋，雷震軍中七馬斃，曜懼，還屯襄城。希烈遣眾萬人縱火攻柵，殪人于塹以薄壘，曜苦戰破之。居數月，希烈自率兵三萬圍曜，築甬道屬城，矢集如雨。帝遣神策將劉德信以兵三千援之，又詔河南都統李勉出兵相掎角。勉以「希烈在外，許守兵少，乘虛襲之，希烈自解」，乃遣部將與德信趨許，未至，有詔切讓，使班師。德信等惶惑還，軍無斥候，至扈澗，為賊設伏詭擊，死者殆半，器械輜重皆亡。德信走汝州。勉恐東都危，使將李堅華以兵四千往守，賊梗道，不得入。汴兵沮，襄城圍益急。帝乃詔普王以荊、襄、江西、鄂、沔之師討蔡州，詔涇原節度使姚令言救襄城。未行，京師亂，帝幸奉天。襄城陷，曜走洛陽。會母喪，奪為東都畿、汝節度使。遷河南尹。曜拙於統禦，而銳殺戮，士畏而不懷。貞元元年，部將叛，夜焚河南門，曜挺身免。帝以汴州刺史薛玨代之，召入為鴻臚卿。終右驍衛上將軍，贈幽州大都督。子七人，俱以儒聞。峘，茂才高第，有節概。崿、嵫、屺皆明經擢第。

His son Yao, courtesy name Ziming. At eight he was summoned to Huaqing Palace by Emperor Xuanzong and appointed Imperial Carriage Attendant. He rose through successive promotions to Minister of Ceremonial. When his father fell into rebel hands, Yao wailed in grief and rage. Former officers such as Pei Mian and Du Hongjian sighed at the sight of him. When Li Guangbi marched into Hebei, Yao asked to join the campaign and was made Minister of Ceremonial and Guangbi's deputy. For accepting the surrender of An Taiqing and relieving Songzhou he was rewarded, appointed Director of the Palace Directorate, inherited his father's title, and became commissioner of the eastern capital garrison and cavalry. When Emperor Dezong took the throne, Yao was recalled as Left Dragon Martial Grand General. When Li Xilie seized Ruzhou, he installed Zhou Huang as puppet governor. By edict Yao was made military commissioner of the eastern capital and Ruzhou field headquarters, commanding ten thousand men from Fengxiang, Binning, Jingyuan, Fengtian, and Haoqi against Li Xilie. The emperor received him and asked, "How does your skill at leading troops compare with your father's?" He answered, "My late father — how dare I measure myself against him? Yet if I can cut down this great serpent and slaughter this penned boar, then accept judgment at home — that is all I ask." The emperor said, "In the Kaiyuan era your father left the court free of worry in the west; now that I have you, I need not fear trouble in the east either." As he set out, the emperor saw him off with rites at Tonghua Gate. That day the shaft of his command staff snapped. Men remembered that when Han had marched out something similar had happened — they had even executed the standard-bearer, yet Han was still destroyed. Now the same omen fell on Yao, and people feared for him. Yao attacked the rebels, retook Ruzhou, captured Zhou Huang and sent him to the throne, and beheaded two enemy officers. Xilie fell back to defend Xuzhou. An edict ordered walls raised at Xiangcheng. Yao argued that with worn-out troops it was better to hold position and grind the enemy down than to build ramparts. The emperor refused. An edict came ordering him to attack at once. Yao advanced to Ying Bridge. Lightning killed seven horses in the camp. Alarmed, he pulled back and encamped at Xiangcheng. Xilie sent ten thousand men to fire the stockade and fill the ditch with corpses to storm the walls. Yao fought them off at heavy cost. Months later Xilie himself brought thirty thousand men to besiege Yao, built covered approaches to the walls, and rained arrows on the city. The emperor sent Liu Dexin of the Shence Army with three thousand men to relieve him and ordered Li Mian, overall commander of Henan, to strike in concert. Li Mian reasoned that with Xilie away from Xu the garrison was thin and a raid on the city would force him to lift the siege. He sent a subordinate with Dexin toward Xu, but before they arrived an angry edict recalled them. Dexin and his men retreated in disorder without scouts. At Hujian they walked into an ambush; nearly half were killed and all their arms and baggage were lost. Dexin fled back to Ruzhou. Fearing for the eastern capital, Li Mian sent Li Jianhua with four thousand men to defend it, but the rebels blocked the roads and they never got through. Morale among the Bian troops collapsed, and the siege of Xiangcheng tightened. The emperor then ordered Prince Pu to march against Caizhou with forces from Jing, Xiang, Jiangxi, E, and Mian, and commanded Yao Lingyan, military commissioner of Jingyuan, to relieve Xiangcheng. Before they could move, the capital erupted in chaos and the emperor fled to Fengtian. Xiangcheng fell. Yao escaped to Luoyang. When his mother died he was recalled from mourning and appointed military commissioner of the eastern capital Ji and Ru circuits. He was promoted to Intendant of Henan. Yao was a poor commander but quick with the sword. His men feared him but gave him no loyalty. In the first year of Zhenyuan his officers mutinied and set fire to the Henan gate by night. Yao barely escaped with his life. The emperor replaced him with Xue Jue, prefect of Bian, and recalled Yao as Minister of Ceremonial. He ended his career as Right Xiaoqi Grand General and was posthumously made Metropolitan Prefect of Youzhou. He had seven sons, all noted for learning. Han passed the maocai examination with highest honors and was a man of principle. E, Zi, and Qi all earned their degrees in the classics examination.

高仙芝

Gao Xianzhi

高仙芝，高麗人。父舍雞，初以將軍隸河西軍，為四鎮校將。仙芝年二十餘，從至安西，以父功補遊擊將軍。數年，父子並班。仙芝美姿質，善騎射，父猶以其儒緩憂之。初事節度使田仁琬、蓋嘉運等，不甚知名。後事夫蒙靈察，乃善遇之。開元末，表為安西副都護、四鎮都知兵馬使。

Gao Xianzhi was a man of Goryeo. His father Sheji had first served as a general in the Hexi Army and became a commandant of the Four Garrisons. In his twenties Xianzhi followed him to Anxi and, through his father's service, was appointed a mobile corps general. Within a few years father and son were serving side by side in the same ranks. Xianzhi was handsome and a fine mounted archer, yet his father still fretted that he was too gentle and unhurried. He first served under military commissioners Tian Renwan and Gai Jiayun and attracted little notice. Later he entered the service of Fumeng Lingcha, who treated him with favor. At the end of the Kaiyuan era he was recommended as deputy protector of Anxi and commander of the Four Garrisons' troops and horses.

小勃律，其王為吐蕃所誘，妻以女，故西北二十餘國皆羈屬吐蕃。自仁琬以來三討之，皆無功。天寶六載，詔仙芝以步騎一萬出討。是時步兵皆有私馬自隨，仙芝乃自安西過撥換城，入握瑟德，經疏勒，登蔥嶺，涉播密川，遂頓特勒滿川，行凡百日。特勒滿川，即五識匿國也。仙芝乃分軍為三，使疏勒趙崇玼自北穀道、撥換賈崇瓘祐自赤佛道、仙芝與監軍邊令誠自護蜜俱入，約會連雲堡。堡有兵千餘。城南因山為柵，兵九千守之。城下據婆勒川。會川漲，不得度，仙芝殺牲祭川，命士人齎三日備集水涯，士不甚信。既涉，旗不沾，韉不濡。兵已成列，仙芝喜，告令誠曰：「向吾方涉，賊擊我，我無類矣。今既濟而陣，天以賊賜我也。」遂登山挑戰，日未中，破之。拔其城，斬五千級，生禽千人，馬千餘匹，衣資器甲數萬計。仙芝欲遂深入，令誠懼，不肯行。仙芝留羸弱三千使守，遂引師行。三日，過坦駒嶺，嶺峻絕，下四十里。仙芝恐士憚險不敢進，乃潛遣二十騎，衣阿弩越胡服來迎，先語部校曰：「阿弩越胡來迎，我無慮矣。」既至，士不肯下，曰：「公驅我何去？」會二十人至，曰：「阿努越胡來迎，已數娑夷橋矣。」仙芝即陽喜，令士盡下。娑夷河，弱水也。既行三日，越胡來迎。明日，至阿弩越城。遣將軍席元慶以精騎一千先往，謂小勃律王曰：「不窺若城，吾假道趨大勃律耳。」城中大酋領皆吐蕃腹心，仙芝密令元慶曰：「若酋領逃者，弟出詔書呼之，賜以繒彩，至，皆縛以待我。。」元慶如言。仙芝至，悉斬之。王及妻逃山穴，不可得，仙芝招喻，乃出降，因平其國。急遣元慶斷娑夷橋，其暮，吐蕃至，不克度。橋長度一箭所及者，功一歲乃成。八月，仙芝以小勃律王及妻自赤佛道還連雲堡，與令誠俱班師。於是拂菻、大食諸胡七十二國皆震懾降附。

In Lesser Bolü the king had been won over by the Tibetans and given a princess in marriage, and more than twenty kingdoms to the northwest had fallen under Tibetan sway. Since Tian Renwan's time three expeditions had been sent against it, all failures. In the sixth year of Tianbao the emperor ordered Xianzhi to take ten thousand foot and horse soldiers on campaign. Every infantryman then rode a private mount. Xianzhi marched from Anxi through Baohuan, entered Wosede, passed Kashgar, crossed the Pamirs, forded the Bodai River, and halted at the Teller Man River — a journey of one hundred days. The Teller Man River lay in the territory of the Five Shibei kingdoms. Xianzhi split his force three ways: Zhao Chongbi of Kashgar by the northern valley, Jia Chongyun of Baohuan by the Chifo road, and Xianzhi himself with the army overseer Bian Lingcheng through Humili, all to rendezvous at Lianyun Fort. The fort held a garrison of more than a thousand men. South of the fort they built a stockade along the mountain slope, garrisoned by nine thousand men. The city stood above the Bole River. The river was in spate and impassable. Xianzhi offered sacrifice to the stream and ordered the men to bring three days' rations to the bank. The troops were skeptical. When they forded it, their banners stayed dry and their saddles untouched by water. With the army formed up, Xianzhi rejoiced and told Lingcheng, "A moment ago, while we were crossing, if the enemy had hit us we would have been destroyed. Now that we are across and in line of battle, Heaven has delivered the enemy into our hands." He then led the climb to give battle and routed them before noon. He stormed the city, killed five thousand, took a thousand prisoners, seized more than a thousand horses, and countless garments, stores, arms, and armor. Xianzhi wanted to push deeper inland, but Lingcheng was afraid and would not advance. Xianzhi left three thousand sick and weak men to hold the post and marched on. Three days later they crossed Tanju Ridge, a sheer drop of forty li. Fearing his men would balk at the drop, Xianzhi secretly sent twenty riders in Annuoyue dress to play envoys and told the officers beforehand, "The Annuoyue have come to meet us — we are safe." When the army reached the ridge the men refused to go down. "Where are you leading us?" they cried." Then the twenty riders appeared and announced, "The Annuoyue envoys are here — we have already crossed the Suoyi Bridge several times." Xianzhi pretended delight and ordered the whole army down the slope. The Suoyi River is the Weak Water. Three days on, the Yue tribes came out to meet them. The next day they reached the city of Annuoyue. He sent General Xi Yuanqing ahead with a thousand elite horsemen to tell the king of Lesser Bolü, "We do not mean to inspect your city — we only ask passage toward Greater Bolü." The leading chiefs in the city were Tibetan loyalists. Xianzhi secretly told Yuanqing, "If any chief tries to flee, produce an imperial summons, offer him silk, and when he comes bind him and hold him for me. Yuanqing did exactly as he was told. When Xianzhi arrived, he executed them all. The king and queen hid in a mountain cave and could not be reached. Xianzhi won them over with promises, and they surrendered, completing the conquest of the kingdom. He hurried Yuanqing to destroy the Suoyi Bridge. That evening the Tibetans arrived and could not cross. The bridge spanned a bowshot's length and had taken a year to construct. In the eighth month Xianzhi brought the king of Lesser Bolü and his wife back along the Chifo road to Lianyun Fort and withdrew with Lingcheng. Seventy-two Hu states, from Byzantium to the Arabs, trembled and submitted.

仙芝遣判官王庭芬奏捷京師。軍至河西，靈察怒，不迎勞。既見，罵曰：「高麗奴，於闐使爾何從得之？」仙芝懼，且謝曰：「中丞力也。」又曰：「焉耆鎮守使、安西副都護、都知兵馬使，皆何從得之？」答曰：「亦中丞力也。」靈察曰：「審若此，捷書不待我而敢即奏，何邪？奴當斬，顧新立功，故貸爾。」仙芝不知所為。令誠密言狀於朝，且曰：「仙芝立功而以憂死，後孰為朝廷用者？」帝乃擢仙芝鴻臚卿、假御史中丞，代靈察為四鎮節度使，而詔靈察還，靈察懼。仙芝朝夕見，輒趨走，靈察益慚。副都護程千里、衙將畢思琛、行官王滔康懷順陳奉忠等皆嘗譖仙芝於靈察者。既視事，呼千里嫚罵曰：「公面雖男兒，而心似婦女，何邪？」謂琛曰：「爾奪吾城東千石種田，憶之乎？」對曰：「公見賜者。」仙芝曰：「爾時吾畏汝威，豈憐汝而賜邪？」又召滔，欲捽辱。良久，皆釋，曰：「吾不恨矣。」由是舉軍安之。俄加左金吾衛大將軍，與一子五品官。

Xianzhi sent his judge-advocate Wang Tingfen to announce victory in the capital. When the army reached Hexi, Lingcha in anger refused to come out and welcome them. When they met he cursed him: "Koryo slave — how did a Khotan envoy come by the likes of you?" Xianzhi was terrified and apologized, "It was all the Vice Director's doing." Lingcha went on, "Commandant of Yanqi, deputy protector of Anxi, commander of troops and horses — how did you get all of those?" Xianzhi answered, "Those too were the Vice Director's doing." Lingcha said, "If that is so, why did you dare send in the victory report before me? A slave like you deserves death, but for your fresh merit I let you off." Xianzhi was at a loss. Lingcheng secretly reported the affair to court, adding, "Xianzhi wins battles yet may die of fear — who will serve the throne after this?" The emperor then promoted Xianzhi to Minister of Ceremonial and acting Vice Censor-in-Chief, made him military commissioner of the Four Garrisons in Lingcha's place, and recalled Lingcha, who was terrified. Whenever Xianzhi saw Lingcha he broke into a run; Lingcha grew only more humiliated. Deputy Protector Cheng Qianli, yamen generals Bi Sichen, staff officer Wang Tao, Kang Huaishun, Chen Fengzhong, and others had all denounced Xianzhi to Lingcha. When he took office he called in Qianli and abused him: "You have a man's face and a woman's heart — what sort of thing is that?" To Sichen he said, "You took my thousand-shi fields east of the city — remember?" Sichen replied, "Your Lordship gave them to me." Xianzhi said, "Then I feared you — I did not give them out of kindness." He also summoned Tao intending to humiliate him. After a long pause he released them all. "I bear no further grudge," he said." From that day the whole army settled down. Before long he was made Grand General of the Left Golden Guard and one son received a fifth-rank post.

九載，討石國，其王車鼻施約降，仙芝為俘獻闕下，斬之，由是西域不服。其王子走大食，乞兵攻仙芝於怛邏斯城，以直其冤。仙芝為人貪，破石，獲瑟瑟十餘斛、黃金五六橐駝、良馬寶玉甚眾，家貲累钜萬。然亦不甚愛惜，人有求輒與，不問幾何。尋除武威太守，代安思順為河西節度使，群胡固留思順，更拜右羽林軍大將軍，封密雲郡公。祿山反，榮王為元帥，仙芝副之，領飛騎、彍騎及朔方等兵，出禁財募關輔士五萬，繼封常清東討。帝禦勤政樓，引榮王受命，宴仙芝以下。帝又幸望春亭勞遣，詔監門將軍邊令誠監軍。次陝郡，而常清敗還。仙芝急，乃開太原倉，悉以所有賜士卒，焚其餘，引兵趨潼關。會賊至，甲仗資糧委於道，彌數百里。既至關，勒兵繕守具，士氣稍稍復振。賊攻關不得入，乃引還。

In the ninth year he attacked Shiguo. King Chebish offered surrender, but Xianzhi took him prisoner, sent him to court, and had him executed. The Western Regions never trusted him again. The prince fled to the Arabs and begged an army to strike Xianzhi at Talas and avenge his father. Xianzhi was a greedy man. Sacking Shiguo he seized more than ten hu of sese gems, five or six camels' load of gold, and countless fine horses and jade. His household wealth swelled beyond measure. Yet he scarcely hoarded them — anyone who asked received a gift, with no count of the cost. He was soon made prefect of Wuwei and military commissioner of Hexi in An Sishun's place, but the Hu tribes wanted Sishun to stay. The court instead made Xianzhi Grand General of the Right Feathered Forest and Duke of Miyun Commandery. When Lushan rebelled, Prince Rong became grand marshal with Xianzhi as his deputy. Xianzhi led the Flying and Expanded Cavalry and Shuofang forces, spent palace funds to raise fifty thousand Guanfu troops, and marched east behind Feng Changqing. The emperor went to the Qinzheng Tower to invest Prince Rong and feast Xianzhi and his officers. He again saw them off from Wangchun Pavilion and appointed Gate Guard General Bian Lingcheng army overseer. They halted at Shaan Commandery as Changqing came back in defeat. Xianzhi in panic opened the Taiyuan granary, gave everything to the troops, burned what remained, and raced for Tong Pass. When the rebels closed in, arms and provisions littered the road for hundreds of li. At the pass they re-formed the ranks and repaired the defenses, and spirit slowly returned. The rebels assaulted the pass, failed to break in, and withdrew.

初，令誠數私於仙芝，仙芝不應，因言其逗撓狀以激帝，且云：「常清以賊搖眾，而仙芝棄陝地數百里，朘盜稟賜。」帝大怒，使令誠即軍中斬之。令誠已斬常清，陳屍於蘧祼。仙芝自外至，令誠以陌刀百人自從，曰：'大夫亦有命。」仙芝遽下，曰：「我退，罪也，死不敢辭。然以我為盜頡資糧，誣也。」謂令誠曰：「上天下地，三軍皆在，君豈不知？」又顧麾下曰：「我募若輩，本欲破賊取重賞，而賊勢方銳，故遷延至此，亦以固關也。我有罪，若輩可言；不爾，當呼枉。」軍中咸呼曰：「枉！」其聲殷地。仙芝視常清屍曰：「公，我所引拔，又代吾為節度，今與公同死，豈命歟！」遂就死。

Earlier Lingcheng had repeatedly tried to win Xianzhi over in private; Xianzhi ignored him. Lingcheng then reported delay and cowardice to enrage the emperor, adding, "Changqing lost heart before the rebels, while Xianzhi abandoned hundreds of li in Shaan and stole the grain meant for the troops." The emperor flew into a rage and ordered Lingcheng to execute him on the spot. Lingcheng had already killed Changqing and displayed his body at Quanluo. Xianzhi arrived from outside. Lingcheng came with a hundred men carrying mo dao blades and said, "The Grand Marshal has orders too." Xianzhi dismounted at once. "Retreat was my crime," he said. "I do not refuse death. But to call me a thief who stole rations is a lie." He turned to Lingcheng. "Heaven and earth bear witness — the whole army is here. Do you not know?" He addressed his men: "I raised you to crush the rebels and win rich rewards. Their momentum was fierce, so I held back — also to keep the pass secure. If I am guilty, speak up; if not, cry out that I am wronged." The whole army roared, "Wronged!" The shout shook the ground. Xianzhi looked at Changqing's body and said, "You were the man I raised up and who succeeded me as commissioner — to die with you now, is this fate?" He then went to his death.

封常清

Feng Changqing

封常清，蒲州猗氏人。外祖教之讀書，多所該究。然孤貧，年過三十，未有名。夫蒙靈察為四鎮節度使，以高仙芝為都知兵馬使。嘗出軍，奏傔從三十餘人，衣褷鮮明，常清慨然投牒請豫。常清素瘠，又腳跛，仙芝陋其貌，不納。明日復至，仙芝謝曰：「傔已足，何庸復來？」常清怒曰：「我慕公義，願事鞭靮，故無媒自前，公何見拒深乎？以貌取士，恐失之子羽。公其念之。」仙芝猶未納，乃日候門下，仙芝不得已，竄名傔中。

Feng Changqing was a native of Yishi in Puzhou. His maternal grandfather taught him letters, and he gained wide learning. Orphaned and poor, he passed thirty without a name. Fumeng Lingcha commanded the Four Garrisons and appointed Gao Xianzhi commander of troops and horses. Once, setting out on campaign, Xianzhi listed more than thirty brightly dressed attendants. Changqing in frustration submitted a petition to join them. Changqing was gaunt and lame. Xianzhi disliked his looks and turned him away. He came again the next day. Xianzhi apologized, "I have enough attendants — why come again?" Changqing flared up. "I admire your honor and came unbidden to serve at your bridle. Why reject me so harshly? Choose men by looks and you may miss another Ziyu. Think on that, my lord." Xianzhi still refused, so Changqing waited at his gate every day until Xianzhi, unable to refuse further, slipped his name onto the attendant roll.

會達奚諸部叛，自黑山西趣碎葉，有詔邀擊。靈察使仙芝以二千騎追躡。達奚行遠，人馬疲，禽馘略盡。常清於幕下潛作捷布，具記井泉次舍、克賊形勢謀略，條最明審。仙芝取讀之，皆意所欲出，乃大駭，即用之。軍還，靈察迎勞，仙芝已去奴襪帶刀，而判官劉眺、獨孤峻爭問：「向捷布誰作者？公幕下安得此人？」答曰：「吾傔封常清也。」眺等驚，進揖常清坐，與語，異之，遂知名。以功授疊州戍主，仍為判官。仙芝破小勃律，代靈察為安西節度使，常清以從戰有勞，擢慶王府錄事參軍事，為節度判官。仙芝征討，常知後務。常清才而果，胸無疑事。仙芝委家事于郎將鄭德詮，其乳母子也，威動軍中。常清嘗自外還，諸將前謁。德詮見常清始貴，易之，走馬突常清騶士去。常清命左右引德詮至廷中，門輒閉，因離席曰：「吾起細微，中丞公過聽，以主留事，郎將安得無禮？」因叱曰：「須暫假郎將死，以肅吾軍。」因杖死，以面僕地曳出之。仙芝妻及乳母哭門外救請，不能得，遽以狀白仙芝，仙芝驚，及見常清，憚其公，不敢讓。常清亦不謝。會大將有罪，又殺二人，軍中莫不股栗。仙芝節度河西，復請為判官。久之，擢安西副大都護、安西四鎮節度副大使，知節度事。未幾，改北庭都護，持節伊西節度使。常清性勤儉，耐勞苦，出軍乘騾，私廄裁二馬，賞罰分明。

When the Daxi tribes rebelled and marched from Black Mountain toward Suyab, the court ordered them intercepted. Lingcha sent Xianzhi after them with two thousand cavalry. The Daxi had marched far and were exhausted; Xianzhi took prisoners and heads until almost none remained. In camp Changqing secretly drafted a victory report listing every well, halt, enemy movement, and stratagem in meticulous detail. Xianzhi read it and found every line matched what he himself would have written. Astonished, he sent it at once. When the army returned, Lingcha came to welcome them. Xianzhi had already cast off his servant's dress and wore a sword. Judge-advocates Liu Tiao and Dugu Jun asked at once, "Who wrote that victory report? Where did you find such a man on your staff?" Xianzhi answered, "My attendant Feng Changqing." Tiao and the others were stunned. They bowed Changqing to a seat, talked with him, and were deeply impressed. His name spread from that day. For his service he was made garrison commander of Diezhou and kept as judge-advocate. When Xianzhi conquered Lesser Bolü and replaced Lingcha as Anxi commissioner, Changqing was promoted to recorder in the Prince of Qing's household and made the commissioner's judge-advocate for his campaign service. On every campaign Xianzhi left the rear to Changqing. Changqing was able and decisive, with never a doubt in his mind. Xianzhi left household affairs to Colonel Zheng Dequan, his wet nurse's son, whose power intimidated the whole army. Once when Changqing returned from an errand, the generals came out to greet him. Dequan, seeing Changqing's new rank, showed disrespect, spurring his horse through Changqing's escort. Changqing had his men bring Dequan into the court and shut the gate. Rising from his seat he said, "I came from nothing; the Vice Director trusted me with command — how dare a colonel show such insolence?" He cried, "I must take the colonel's life for a moment to restore order in this army." He had him beaten to death and dragged out facedown. Xianzhi's wife and wet nurse wailed at the gate in vain. They rushed word to Xianzhi, who was shocked; when he faced Changqing he dared not rebuke him for his stern justice. Changqing offered no apology. When a senior officer offended him he killed two more men, and the whole army shook with fear. When Xianzhi took command of Hexi he again asked Changqing to serve as his judge-advocate. In time he was made deputy grand protector of Anxi and deputy grand commissioner of the Four Garrisons, acting commissioner in all but name. Soon he was transferred to protector of Beiting and military commissioner of Yi and Xi with full insignia of command. Frugal and tireless by nature, he rode a mule on campaign and kept only two horses in his private stable. Rewards and punishments were exact.

天寶末入朝，而安祿山反，帝引見，問何策以討賊。常清見帝憂，因大言曰：「天下太平久，人不知戰。然事有逆順，勢有奇變，臣請馳至東京，悉府庫募驍勇，挑馬箠度河，計日取逆胡首以獻闕下。」天子壯之。明日，以常清為范陽節度副大使，乘驛赴東京。常清募兵得六萬人，然皆市井庸保，乃部分旗幟，斷河陽橋以守。賊移書平原，令太守顏真卿以兵七千防河。真卿馳使司兵參軍事李平入奏。常清取平表發視，即倚帳作書遺真卿，勸堅守，且傳購祿山檄數十函與之，真卿得，以分曉諸郡。祿山度河，陷滎陽，入罌子谷，先驅至葵園。常清使驍騎拒之，殺拓羯數十百人。賊大軍至，常清不能禦，退入上東門，戰不利。賊鼓而進，劫官吏。再戰於都亭驛，又不勝，引兵守宣仁門，復敗。乃自提象門出，伐大木塞道以殿，至谷水，西奔陝。語高仙芝曰：「賊銳甚，難與爭鋒。潼關無兵，一夫奔突則京師危，不如急守潼關。」仙芝從之。

At the end of the Tianbao era he came to court just as An Lushan rebelled. The emperor summoned him and asked how to defeat the rebels. Seeing the emperor's distress, Changqing spoke boldly: "The empire has known peace so long that men have forgotten war. Yet fortune turns, and stratagems still avail. Let me ride to the Eastern Capital, empty the treasuries to raise brave men, lash our horses across the river, and within days bring the rebel's head to the palace." The emperor took heart. The next day he was made deputy military commissioner of Fanyang and galloped by post relay to the Eastern Capital. Changqing raised sixty thousand men, but they were shopkeepers and day laborers. He arrayed banners and destroyed the Heyang Bridge to hold the line. The rebels wrote to Pingyuan ordering Prefect Yan Zhenqing to hold the river with seven thousand men. Zhenqing dispatched his army registrar Li Ping to report to the throne. Changqing read Li Ping's dispatch, then from his tent wrote Zhenqing urging him to stand firm and sent dozens of copies of Lushan's bounty proclamations. Zhenqing circulated them through the provinces. Lushan crossed the river, captured Xingyang, entered Yingzi Valley, and his vanguard reached Sunflower Garden. Changqing sent his best cavalry to meet them and killed scores of Tujue warriors. When the main rebel force arrived Changqing could not hold. He fell back to the Upper East Gate and lost the fight. The rebels advanced to the drum and seized the officials. They fought again at Duting Station and lost again, then tried to hold Xuanren Gate and were beaten once more. He slipped out through Elephant Gate, felled trees to block pursuit, reached Gu River, and fled west to Shaan. He told Gao Xianzhi, "The rebels are at their peak — we cannot meet them head on. Tong Pass is barely manned. One breakthrough and the capital falls. We must hold the pass at once." Xianzhi agreed.

敗書聞，帝削常清官，使白衣隸仙芝軍效力。仙芝使衣黑衣監左右部軍。及邊令誠以詔書至，示之，常清曰：「吾所以不死者，恐汙國家節，受戮賊手。今死乃甘心。」

When word of defeat reached the court, the emperor stripped Changqing of rank and made him serve in common dress under Xianzhi. Xianzhi put him in black to supervise the left and right wings of the army. When Bian Lingcheng arrived with the edict, Changqing said, "I stayed alive only so I would not die a traitor's death and stain the dynasty. Now I can die content."

始，常清敗，徑入關，欲見上陳討賊事。至渭南，有詔赴潼關。常清憂懼，為表以謝，且言：「自東京陷，三遣使表論成敗，不得對。」又言：「臣死後，望陛下無輕此賊，則社稷安。」至是臨刑，以表授令誠而死。人多哀之。

Earlier, after his defeat, Changqing had entered the pass intending to see the emperor and explain the campaign. At Weinan an edict ordered him to Tong Pass instead. Anxious and afraid, he submitted a memorial of apology, adding, "Since the Eastern Capital fell I have sent three memorials on the course of the war and received no answer." He also wrote, "After I die, do not underestimate this rebel, and the realm will endure." At the block he gave the memorial to Lingcheng and went to his death. Many grieved for him.

贊曰：祿山裒百鬥驍虜，乘天下忘戰，主德耄勤，故提戈內噪，人情崩潰。常清乃驅市人數萬以嬰賊鋒，一戰不勝，即奪爵土。欲入關見天子論成敗事，使者三輩上書，皆不報，回斬於軍。仙芝棄陝守關，遏賊西勢，以喪地被誅。玄宗雖為左右蒙瞽，然荒奪其明亦甚矣。卒使叛將得藉口，執翰以降賊。嗚呼，非天熟其惡，使亂四海，舉黔首而殘之邪！彼二將奚誅焉？

The commentator writes: Lushan mustered fierce warriors hardened in a hundred fights, exploited a realm that had forgotten war and a ruler grown old in pleasure, raised arms within the empire, and men's hearts gave way. Changqing drove tens of thousands of townsfolk against the rebel spears; one defeat cost him rank and lands. He tried to reach the emperor to report the truth; three messengers carried memorials and none was answered. He was executed on his return to camp. Xianzhi gave up Shaan to hold the pass and checked the rebel advance west, yet was killed for yielding ground. Emperor Xuanzong was deceived by his courtiers, but he had also surrendered his judgment almost completely. In the end the rebel generals found their excuse, seized Ge Shu Han, and delivered him to the enemy. Alas — had Heaven not ripened their wickedness, driving them to ravage the empire and butcher the people! What crime deserved death for those two generals?

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