Volume 154 Biographies 79: Li Cheng and sons: Yuan, Xian, Su, Ting

李晟子:愿憲愬聽聽子:琢甥:王佖

Sons of Li Sheng: Yuan, Xian, Su, and Ting; Su's son: Zhuo; nephew: Wang Tian

李晟，字良器，洮州臨潭人。世以武力仕，然位不過裨將。晟幼孤，奉母孝。身長六尺。年十八，往事河西王忠嗣，從擊吐蕃。悍酋乘城，殺傷士甚眾，忠嗣怒，募射者，晟挾一矢殪之，三軍歡奮。忠嗣撫其背曰：「萬人敵也。」鳳翔節度使高升召署列將，擊疊州叛羌于高當川，又擊連狂羌於罕山，破之。累遷左羽林大將軍。廣德初，擊党項有功，授特進，試太常卿。

Li Sheng, courtesy name Liangqi, was a native of Lintan in Taozhou. His family had served by force of arms for generations, yet none had risen higher than deputy general. Sheng lost his father in childhood and devoted himself to his mother with exemplary filial care. He stood six chi tall. At eighteen he entered the service of Wang Zhongsi, Prince of Heyi, and campaigned against the Tibetans. A fierce enemy leader manned the walls and inflicted heavy casualties; Zhongsi, enraged, called for archers, and Sheng felled him with a single arrow, whereupon the whole army erupted in cheers. Zhongsi clapped him on the back and said, "Here is a man who could face ten thousand alone. Gao Sheng, military commissioner of Fengxiang, summoned him and made him a ranked commander; he struck the rebel Qiang of Diezhou at Gaodang River and again routed the Lian-Kuang Qiang at Hanshan. He rose through repeated promotions to General of the Left Inspired Awesomeness Army. Early in the Guangde reign he distinguished himself fighting the Tangut and was granted the honorary title Special Advancement with provisional appointment as Minister of Imperial Sacrifices.

大曆初，李抱玉署晟右軍將。吐蕃寇靈州，抱玉授以兵五千擊之，辭曰：「以眾則不足，以謀則多。」乃請千人。由大震關趨臨洮，屠定秦堡，執其帥慕容谷鐘，虜乃解靈州去。遷開府儀同三司，以右金吾衛大將軍為涇原、四鎮、北庭兵馬使。馬璘與吐蕃戰鹽倉，敗績；晟率遊兵拔璘以歸，封合川郡王。璘內忌晟威略，歸之朝，為右神策都將。德宗始立，吐蕃寇劍南，方崔寧未還，蜀土大震，詔晟將神策兵救之。逾漏天，拔飛越等三城，絕大渡，斬虜千級，虜遁去。

Early in the Dali reign Li Baoyu appointed Sheng general of the right army. When Tibetans threatened Lingzhou, Baoyu gave him five thousand men to repel them; he declined, saying, "For a frontal fight that is too few; for a stratagem it is too many. He asked instead for a thousand men. He marched through Dazhen Pass toward Lintao, stormed Dingqin Fort, captured its commander Murong Guzhong, and the invaders thereupon abandoned their siege of Lingzhou. He was promoted to Grand Preceptor with ceremonial parity to the Three Excellencies and, while serving as General of the Right Golden Crow Guard, was made overseer of troops for Jingyuan, the Four Garrisons, and Beiting. Ma Lin was defeated by the Tibetans at Yancang; Sheng led a flying column to extricate Lin and escort him to safety, for which he was enfeoffed as Prince of Hechuan. Lin, jealous of Sheng's reputation and ability, recalled him to the capital, where he was made chief commander of the Right Divine Strategy Army. Soon after Emperor Dezong took the throne, Tibetans invaded Jiannan while Cui Ning was still absent; panic swept Shu, and the emperor ordered Sheng to lead the Divine Strategy Army to the relief of the region. He crossed the treacherous Leak-Heaven Pass, took Feiyue and two other strongholds, cut the enemy off at the Dadu River, killed thousands, and drove the invaders into flight.

建中二年，魏博田悅反，晟為神策先鋒，與河東馬燧、昭義李抱真合兵攻之。斬楊朝光，晟乘冰度洺水，破悅；又戰洹水，悅大敗，遂進攻魏。加檢校左散騎常侍，兼魏府左司馬。硃滔、王武俊圍康日知于趙州也，抱真分兵二千戍邢，燧怒，欲班師。晟曰：「奉詔東討者，吾三帥也。邢、趙比壤，今賊以兵加趙，是邢有晝夜憂，李公分眾守之，不為過，公奈何遽引去！」燧悟，釋然，即造抱真壘，與交歡。晟建言：「以兵趨定州，與張孝忠合，以圖范陽，則武俊等當舍趙。」帝壯之，授御史大夫，又俾神策三將軍莫仁擢等隸之。晟自魏引而北，武俊果解去。晟留趙三日，與孝忠連兵，北略恒州。圍硃滔將鄭景濟于清苑，決水灌之。悅、武俊引兵戰白樓，孝忠兵笮，晟引步騎擊破之，清苑益急。滔、武俊大懼，悉起兵來救，圍晟軍。晟內攻景濟而外抗滔等，自正月至五月不解。會晟疾甚，不能興，軍中共計引還定州，而賊猶不敢逼。

In Jianzhong year 2, Tian Yue of Weibo rose in rebellion; Sheng served as vanguard of the Divine Strategy Army and marched with Ma Sui of Hedong and Li Baozhen of Zhaoyi against him. Yang Chaoguang was executed; Sheng crossed the frozen Ming River and routed Yue; At another battle on the Huan River Yue suffered a crushing defeat, and the allies pressed on toward Wei. He received the additional post of Acting Left Regular Attendant and was made left staff major at the Wei headquarters. While Zhu Tao and Wang Wujun besieged Kang Rizhi at Zhaozhou, Baozhen posted two thousand men to garrison Xing; Sui, furious, threatened to pull his forces out. Sheng said, "The three of us were the ones ordered east to suppress the rebels. Xing and Zhao lie side by side; with the enemy hammering Zhao, Xing lives under constant threat. For Lord Li to detach troops to hold Xing is no fault—why would you, sir, march away so soon! Sui took the point, his anger subsided, and he went straight to Baozhen's camp to restore amity between them. Sheng urged, "March on Dingzhou, unite with Zhang Xiaozhong, and strike at Fanyang—the rebels at Zhao will have to lift their siege. The emperor approved the plan, made him Censor-in-Chief, and placed the three Divine Strategy generals Mo Renzhuo and others under his command. Sheng marched north from Wei, and Wujun, as predicted, broke off the siege and withdrew. After three days at Zhao he joined Xiaozhong and swept north toward Hengzhou. He invested Zhu Tao's general Zheng Jingji at Qingyuan and broke the dikes to flood the town. Yue and Wujun gave battle at Bailou; with Xiaozhong's forces pinned, Sheng led foot and horse to break them, tightening the noose on Qingyuan. Tao and Wujun, in alarm, raised their full strength to relieve the siege and encircled Sheng's army. Sheng hammered Jingji from within while holding Tao and the others at bay without, and from the first month to the fifth the fighting never let up. When Sheng fell gravely ill and could not leave his bed, the army resolved to fall back on Dingzhou—and even then the enemy did not dare close in.

疾間，將復進，會帝出奉天，有詔召晟即日治嚴。而孝忠以軍介二盜間，倚晟為重，數止晟無西。晟語眾曰：「天子播越，人臣當百舍一息。義武欲止吾，吾當以子為質。」乃以憑約昏，並遺良馬。孝忠有親將謁晟，晟解玉帶遺之，使喻孝忠。乃得逾飛孤，次代州，詔迎拜神策行營節度使。進臨渭北，壁東渭橋，所過樵蘇無犯。時劉德信自扈澗敗歸，亦次渭南，軍囂無制。德信入謁晟，晟責所以敗，斬之，以數騎入壁勞其軍，無敢動。晟已並兵，則軍益振。

As he recovered and prepared to advance again, the emperor fled to Fengtian; an edict ordered Sheng to strike camp and march at once. Xiaozhong, his army wedged between two rebel hosts, depended on Sheng as his anchor and repeatedly begged him not to march west. Sheng told his men, "The emperor is in exile; a loyal subject should not spare himself even if he must march a hundred stages without rest. If Yiwu tries to hold me back, I will leave my son with him as pledge. He sealed the bond with a marriage alliance and sent fine horses as well. When one of Xiaozhong's trusted officers came to see him, Sheng took off his jade belt and sent it back with a message for Xiaozhong. Thus he crossed Feigu Pass and halted at Daizhou, where an edict received him and named him military commissioner of the Divine Strategy field army. He pressed to the north bank of the Wei, fortified East Wei Bridge, and forbade his men to touch so much as a stick of firewood along the march. Liu Dexin, beaten back from Hujian, was also camped at Weinan with a disorderly, undisciplined force. When Dexin came to pay his respects, Sheng held him to account for the defeat and executed him, then rode into the camp with a handful of men to reassure the troops—and not a man stirred. With both armies under his command, morale surged.

於是朔方李懷光方軍咸陽，不欲晟當一面，請與晟合。有詔徙屯，乃引趨陳濤斜，與懷光聯壘。晟每與賊戰，必錦裘繡帽自表，指顧陣前。懷光望見，惡之，戒曰：「將務持重，豈宜自表襮，為賊餌哉！」晟曰：「昔在涇原，士頗相畏伏，欲令見之，奪其心爾。」懷光不悅，遷延有異志。晟使間說懷光曰：「賊據京邑，天子暴露于外，公宜速進兵。雖晟不肖，願為公先驅，死且不悔。」懷光不納。每兵至都城下，而懷光軍多鹵掠，晟軍整戢。懷光使分所獲遺之，又辭不敢受。懷光謀沮撓其軍，即奏言：「神策兵給賜比方鎮獨厚，今桀逆未平，軍不可以異。且眾以為言，臣無以解。惟陛下裁處。」懷光欲晟自削其軍，則士怨易撓。帝議諸軍與神策等，力且不贍，遣翰林學士陸贄臨詔懷光，令與晟計所宜者。懷光曰：「稟賜不均，軍何以戰！」贄數顧晟，晟曰：「公，元帥，軍政得專之。晟將一軍，唯所命，其增損費調，敢不聽？」懷光默然計塞，顧刻削稟賜事出己，乃止。

Li Huai'guang of Shuofang was then at Xianyang and, unwilling to let Sheng hold an independent command, asked to combine their forces. By imperial order he moved camp, marched to Chantaoxie, and pitched beside Huai'guang. In every battle with the rebels Sheng appeared in brocade and an embroidered cap, directing affairs in plain sight before the ranks. Huai'guang saw it and took offense, warning him, "A commander must keep his gravity—why show yourself so boldly and offer the enemy a target! Sheng replied, "Back in Jingyuan the men knew me and feared me; I want them to see me again and break the enemy's spirit—that is all." Huai'guang grew resentful, dragged his feet, and began to nurse rebellious designs. Sheng sent an emissary to urge Huai'guang: "The rebels hold the capital while the emperor suffers in the open—you should strike at once. Unworthy as I am, I will lead the van for you and die without regret. Huai'guang would not listen. Whenever they drew near the capital, Huai'guang's men looted freely while Sheng's held strict discipline. Huai'guang tried to share the spoils with him, but Sheng refused each gift. Seeking to undermine Sheng's troops, Huai'guang memorialized that the Divine Strategy Army was paid more lavishly than the frontier commands and that, with rebellion still raging, such inequality could not stand. My own men are complaining, and I have no answer for them. I beg Your Majesty to decide. Huai'guang hoped Sheng would cut his own pay so that resentful troops would be easy to break. The court debated equalizing pay across the armies but lacked the means; the emperor sent Hanlin scholar Lu Zhi with the edict to Huai'guang, bidding him and Sheng work out a fair arrangement. Huai'guang declared, "Unequal pay means an army that will not fight! Lu Zhi glanced repeatedly at Sheng, who said, "You are supreme commander—military affairs are yours to decide. I lead one army and obey you alone; raise or cut our allowances as you see fit—I will not object. Huai'guang fell silent, his scheme collapsed: any cut would be his own doing, and he dropped the matter.

懷光屯咸陽凡八旬，帝數促戰，以伺賊隙為言，卒不出兵，陰通硃泚，反跡浸露。晟懼為所並，上言：「當先變製備，請假裨佐趙光銑、唐良臣、張彧為洋、利、劍三州刺史，各勒兵以通蜀、漢衿喉。」未報。會吐蕃欲佐誅泚，帝議幸咸陽督戰，懷光大駭，疑帝奪其軍，圖反益急。晟與李建徽、陽惠元皆聯屯，適有使者到晟軍，晟乃令曰：「有詔徙屯。」即結陣趨東渭橋。後數日，懷光並建徽、惠元兵，惠元死之。

Huai'guang lingered at Xianyang for eighty days; though the emperor repeatedly ordered him to fight, he pleaded the need to watch for an opening and never advanced, while secretly dealing with Zhu Ci until his treason could no longer be hidden. Fearing absorption by Huai'guang, Sheng urged preemptive redeployment: appoint his lieutenants Zhao Guangxian, Tang Liangchen, and Zhang Yu provisional governors of Yang, Li, and Jian, each with troops to secure the corridor between Shu and Han. The court never answered. When Tibet offered help against Zhu Ci, the emperor thought of going to Xianyang to direct operations; Huai'guang panicked, fearing the emperor meant to strip him of command, and hurried his rebellion forward. Sheng was encamped with Li Jianhui and Yang Huiyuan when an envoy reached his lines; Sheng immediately announced, "We have orders to move camp. He formed up at once and marched for East Wei Bridge. Days later Huai'guang seized the forces of Jianhui and Huiyuan; Huiyuan was killed in the struggle.

是日，帝進狩梁州，駱穀道隘，儲供不豫，從官乏食，帝歎曰：「早用晟言，三蜀之利，可坐有也。」顧渾瑊曰：「渭橋在賊腹中，兵孤絕，晟能辦勝邪？」瑊曰：「晟秉義挺忠，崒然不可奪。臣策之，必破賊。」帝乃安。自行在遣晟將張少弘口詔進晟尚書左僕射、同中書門下平章事。晟受命，拜且泣曰：「京師天下本，若皆執羈靮，誰將復之！」乃繕甲兵，治陴隍，以圖收復。

That same day the emperor fled toward Liangzhou; the Luogu Pass was cramped, supplies had not been laid in, and his entourage went hungry. He sighed, "Had I heeded Sheng in time, the wealth of the Three Shu would already be ours. Turning to Hun Jian he asked, "East Wei Bridge sits deep in enemy country with a lone army—can Sheng possibly win?" Jian answered, "Sheng is steadfast in loyalty and purpose—nothing will shake him. I am certain he will crush the rebels." The emperor took heart. From the imperial refuge he sent Zhang Shaohong with an oral edict promoting Sheng to Left Vice Director of the Department of State Affairs and Grand Councilor. Accepting the commission, Sheng bowed and wept: "The capital is the heart of the empire—if every man holds back, who will win it back? He set about repairing arms and fortifications, preparing to retake the capital.

是時，晟提孤軍橫當寇鋒，恐二盜合以軋之，則卑詞厚幣，偽致誠於懷光者。時敖廥單覂，乃使張彧假京兆少尹，多署吏，調畿內賦，不淹旬，芻米告具。乃陳兵下令曰：「國家多難，乘輿播遷，見危死節，自吾之分。公等此時不誅元兇，取富貴，非豪英也。渭橋斷賊首尾，吾欲與公戮力一心，建不世之功，可乎？」士皆雪泣曰：「惟公命。」於是駱元光以華州之眾守潼關，尚可孤以神策兵保七盤，皆受晟節度；戴休顏舉奉天，韓遊瑰悉邠寧軍從晟。懷光始懼。晟乃移書顯讓之，使破賊自贖。懷光不聽，然其下益攜落，畏為晟襲，乃奔河中。其將孟涉、段威勇以兵數千自拔歸，晟皆表以要官。帝遣使者間道詔晟兼河中、晉絳慈隰節度使，又兼京畿、渭北、鄜坊、丹延節度招討使。帝欲益西幸，晟請駐梁、漢以系天下望。又進京畿、渭北、鄜坊、商華兵馬副元帥。時京兆司錄參軍李敬仲自賊中來，乃署節度府判官，以諫議大夫鄭雲逵為行軍司馬，擢張彧自副。

Sheng now held a lone army squarely in the enemy's path; lest Huai'guang and Zhu Ci unite against him, he flattered Huai'guang with humble words and lavish gifts, feigning loyalty. With the granaries bare, he made Zhang Yu acting vice magistrate of Jingzhao, staffed a full bureaucracy, and levied the capital districts; within ten days fodder and grain were in hand. He paraded his troops and proclaimed, "The realm is in crisis and the throne in exile—to face danger and die for duty is our portion. If you will not now strike down the arch-rebel and win glory, you are no true warriors. At East Wei Bridge we can cut the enemy in two—I ask you to fight as one and win a fame that will never die. Will you follow me? The men wept as one and cried, "We await only your word." Luo Yuanguang of Huazhou took Tong Pass, Shang Ke'gu held Qipan with Divine Strategy troops, and both came under Sheng's command; Dai Xiuyan rallied Fengtian, and Han Yougui marched the whole Binning army to Sheng's side. Huai'guang at last grew afraid. Sheng sent him an open letter of rebuke, bidding him crush the rebels and redeem himself. Huai'guang refused, but his ranks crumbled; fearing a strike by Sheng, he fled to Hezhong. Generals Meng She and Duan Weiyong defected with several thousand men, and Sheng recommended each for high office. By secret courier the emperor named Sheng military commissioner of Hezhong and Jin-Jiang-Ci-Sui, and also pacification commissioner for the capital region, the Wei north bank, Fufang, and Danyan. When the emperor planned to flee farther west, Sheng urged him to remain at Liang and Han to keep the empire's hopes fixed on the throne. He was further made deputy commander of forces for the capital region, the Wei north bank, Fufang, and Shanghua. Li Jingzhong, registrar of Jingzhao, escaped from the rebel-held city; Sheng made him chief secretary of headquarters, named Remonstrance Official Zheng Yunkui campaigning staff major, and elevated Zhang Yu to his own deputy.

神策軍及晟家皆為賊質，左右有言者，晟涕數行下，曰：「陛下安在，而欲恤家乎？」泚使晟吏王無忌婿款壁門曰：「公等家無恙。」晟怒曰：「爾乃與賊為間乎？」叱斬之。時輸縑不屬，盛夏，士有衣裘者，晟能與下同其苦，以忠誼感發士心，終無攜怨。邏士得姚令言、崔宣諜者，晟命釋縛，飯飲之，遣還，敕曰：「為我謝令言等，善為賊守，勿不忠於泚。」

The Divine Strategy Army and Sheng's own kin were hostages in rebel hands; when aides raised it, tears streamed down his face. "The emperor's fate is unknown," he said, "and you would have me fret over my household? Zhu Ci sent the son-in-law of Sheng's officer Wang Wuji to the gate with word that their families were safe. Sheng thundered, "Are you spying for the enemy?" He had the man executed on the spot. Supplies of silk had run out; in the heat of summer some men still wore furs. Sheng shared their hardships and stirred them with loyalty until not one soldier turned mutinous. Patrols seized spies of Yao Lingyan and Cui Xuan; Sheng freed them, gave them food and drink, and sent them back with a message: "Tell Lingyan to keep faith with Zhu Ci and hold the city well for him."

乃引兵叩都門，賊不敢出，振旅而還。明日，會諸將圖所向，眾對先拔外城，然後清宮。晟曰：「外城有裏閈之隘，若設伏格戰，居人囂潰，非計也。賊重兵精甲聚苑中，今直擊之，是披其心腹，將圖走不暇。」諸將曰：「善。」乃自東渭橋移壁光泰門，以薄都城，連溝柵。而賊將張庭芝、李希倩求戰，晟顧曰：「賊不出，是吾憂也。今乃冒死來，天誘之矣。」勒吳詵等縱兵鏖擊。賊攻華師急，晟以精騎馳救，中軍噪而從，大破之，乘勝入光泰門；再戰，敗卻，僵屍相藉，余眾走白華，賊大哭，終夜不息。翌日，將復戰。或請待西師，晟曰：「賊既敗，當乘機撲殄。苟俟西軍，是容其為計，豈吾利邪？」乃悉軍軍光泰門，使王佖、李演將騎，史萬頃將步，抵苑北。晟先夜隤苑垣為道二百步，比兵至，賊已伐木塞以拒戰。晟叱諸將曰：「安得縱賊？今先斬公矣！」萬頃懼，先登，拔柵以入，佖督騎繼之。賊崩潰，執其將段誠諫，大兵分道進，雷噪震地。令言、庭芝、希倩等殊死鬥，晟令唐良臣等步騎奔突，賊陣成輒北，十餘遇皆不勝，蹙入白華。賊伏千騎出官軍背，晟以麾下百騎自馳之，左右呼曰：「相公來！」賊驚潰，禽馘略盡。泚率殘卒萬人西走，田子奇追之，餘黨悉降。

He marched to the capital gates; the rebels dared not sally forth, and he withdrew in good order. Next day he called his generals to decide the plan; most urged taking the outer city first, then storming the palace. Sheng objected: "The outer wards are a maze of alleys; street fighting would panic the civilians—that is no strategy. The enemy's best troops are massed in the imperial park; strike there and we pierce their heart—they will flee before they can think. The generals agreed. He shifted from East Wei Bridge to Guangtai Gate, pressed the capital, and linked trenches and stockades. Rebel generals Zhang Tingzhi and Li Xiqian offered battle; Sheng remarked, "My fear was that they would not come out. Now they throw themselves into the fight—Heaven has delivered them to us. He ordered Wu Shen and the rest to charge. When the enemy hammered Hua's wing, Sheng raced in with elite cavalry; the center roared forward, broke them, and drove through Guangtai Gate; In a second clash the rebels broke; the dead lay in heaps; survivors fled to Baihua, and the enemy wailed through the night. The next day he prepared to attack again. Some urged waiting for western reinforcements; Sheng said, "The enemy is broken—we must strike now and finish them. Wait for the western army and we give them time to recover—where is the gain in that? He massed the whole army at Guangtai Gate, Wang Tian and Li Yan leading the horse, Shi Wanqing the foot, and advanced to the north of the imperial park. Overnight Sheng had breached two hundred paces of the park wall; when his men arrived, the rebels had already felled trees to block the way. Sheng roared at his generals, "How dare you let the enemy escape! I will execute you myself first! Terrified, Wanqing led the assault, tore down the barricade, and broke in; Tian drove the cavalry after him. The rebel line shattered; Duan Chengjian was captured; the main force swept in on every road with a roar that shook the earth. Lingyan, Tingzhi, and Xiqian fought desperately; Sheng sent Tang Liangchen's mixed force to hammer them; ten times the rebels formed line and ten times they broke, driven at last into Baihua. A thousand rebel horsemen ambushed the government rear; Sheng himself charged with a hundred riders while his men shouted, "The Chancellor comes! The enemy panicked and fled; prisoners and heads were taken by the score. Zhu Ci fled west with ten thousand survivors; Tian Ziqi pursued, and the rest surrendered.

晟引軍屯含元外廷，舍右金吾次，令軍中曰：「五日內不得輒通家問，違者斬。」遣京兆尹李齊運部長安、萬年令，分慰居人，秋毫無所擾。別將高明曜取賊妓一，司馬伷取賊馬二，即斬以徇。坊人之遠者，宿昔乃知王師之入也。明日，孟涉屯白華，尚可孤屯望仙門，駱元光屯章敬寺，晟屯安國寺。斬賊用事者及臣賊宦豎於市，表著節不屈者，擇文武攝台省官，以俟乘輿。條脅汙於賊者，請以不死。

Sheng quartered his troops in the outer court of Hanyuan Hall and proclaimed: "For five days no man may send word home—on pain of death. He sent Li Qiyun, magistrate of Jingzhao, with the county magistrates to reassure the populace; not a household was molested. When subcommander Gao Mingyao seized a rebel woman and staff major You two rebel horses, Sheng had them executed as an example. In distant wards people only learned a day later that the imperial army had taken the city. Next day Meng She held Baihua, Shang Ke'gu Wangxian Gate, Luo Yuanguang Zhangjing Temple, and Sheng Anguo Temple. He executed rebel officials and collaborating eunuchs in public, honored those who had refused to submit, and appointed civil and military men to hold the central ministries until the emperor's return. He drew up a list of those forced into service under the rebels and pleaded that their lives be spared.

露布至梁，帝感泣，群臣上壽，且言：「晟蕩夷凶憝，而市不易廛，宗廟不震，長安之人不識旗鼓，雖三代用師，不能加之。」帝曰：「天生晟，為社稷萬人，豈獨朕哉！」拜晟司徒，兼中書令，實封千戶。晟遣大將吳詵以兵三千到寶雞清道，自請迎扈，不許。帝至自梁，晟以戎服見三橋，帝駐馬勞之。晟再拜頓首，賀克殄大盜，廟朝安復，已，即跪陳：「備爪牙臣，不能指日破賊，致乘輿再狩，乃臣不任職之咎，敢請死。」伏道左，帝為掩涕，命給事中齊映起之，使就位。有詔賜第永崇裏、涇陽上田、延平門之林園、女樂一列。晟入第，京兆供帳，教坊鼓吹迎導，詔將相送之。帝紀其功，自文於碑，敕皇太子書，立於東渭橋，以示後世雲。又令太子錄副以賜。

When the victory dispatch reached Liangzhou the emperor wept; at court the ministers praised Sheng for crushing the rebels without disturbing the markets, the temples, or the people of Chang'an—a feat, they said, beyond even the sage kings of antiquity. The emperor said, "Heaven sent us Sheng for the realm and its people—not for my sake alone!" Sheng was made Minister of Education and Grand Councilor, with a substantive fief of one thousand households. Sheng sent Wu Shen with three thousand men to clear the road at Baoji and asked leave to escort the emperor home; the request was denied. When the emperor returned from Liangzhou, Sheng met him at San Bridge in armor; the emperor reined in and praised him. Sheng bowed low, hailed the destruction of the rebels and the restoration of court and capital, then knelt and said, "Your servant failed to crush the rebels in time and forced Your Majesty into exile again—the fault is mine alone; I beg for death. He lay prostrate beside the road; the emperor wiped his eyes and ordered Qi Ying to raise him and take his station. By edict he received a mansion in Yongchong Lane, choice fields in Jingyang, the gardens at Yanping Gate, and a company of musicians. When he entered his new house, Jingzhao furnished it, the imperial musicians escorted him in state, and the chancellors were ordered to attend him home. The emperor composed the inscription himself, had the crown prince write it on stone, and set it up at East Wei Bridge for generations to see. He also had the crown prince copy the text and present it to Sheng as a gift.

始，晟屯渭橋也，熒惑守歲，久乃退，府中皆賀曰：「熒惑退，國家之利，速用兵者昌。」晟曰：「天子暴露，人臣當力死勤難，安知天道邪？」至是，乃曰：「前士大夫勸晟出兵，非敢拒也。且人可用而不可使之知也。夫惟五緯盈縮不常，晟懼復守歲，則我軍不戰自屈矣！」皆曰：「非所及也。」

While Sheng was at Wei Bridge, Mars had lingered in the heavens; when it finally moved off, his staff congratulated him: "Mars retreats—a blessing for the state; swift action will bring victory. Sheng replied, "The emperor suffers in the open; a subject owes his life in hardship—what has astrology to do with it?" Only now he explained, "When my officers urged me to attack, I did not refuse them out of fear. Men can be led, but they must not be told the whole truth. The planets shift unpredictably; I feared that if Mars returned, the men would lose heart without a blow being struck! All agreed they would never have thought of it.

涇州倚邊，數戕其帥，晟請治不龔命者，因以訓耕積粟實塞下，羈制西戎。帝乃拜晟鳳翔、隴右、涇原節度使，兼行營副元帥，徙王西平郡，實封千五百戶。晟請與李楚琳俱行，亦將治殺張鎰罪，帝方務安反側，不許。晟至鳳翔，亂將王斌等十餘人以次伏誅。時宦者尹元貞持節到同、華，擅入河中諭慰李懷光。晟劾元貞矯使，欲洗宥元惡，請治罪。又言：「赦懷光有五不可：河中抵京師三百里，同州制其沖，兵多則示未信，少則力不足，忽驚東偏，何以待之？一也。今赦懷光，則必以晉、絳、慈、隰還之，渾瑊、康日知又且遷徙，二也。兵力未窮，忽宥反逆，四夷聞之，謂陛下兵屈而自罷耳；今回紇拒北，吐蕃梗西，希烈僭淮、蔡，若棄強示弱，以招窺覬，三也。懷光既赦，則朔方將士悉復敘勳行賞，追還縑廩；今府庫空殫，物不酬滿，是激其叛，四也。既解河中，諸道還屯，當有賜賚，賞典不舉，怨言必起，五也。今河中米鬥五百，芻稿且罄，人餓死牆壁間，其大將殺戮幾盡，圍之旬時，力窮且潰，願無養腹心疾為後憂。臣請選精兵五千，約十日糧，可以破賊。」帝方以賊委馬燧、渾瑊，故不許。

Jingzhou on the frontier had seen one commander after another murdered; Sheng asked to punish the disobedient, promote farming, stock the border granaries, and hold the western tribes in check. The emperor made him commissioner of Fengxiang, Longyou, and Jingyuan, deputy supreme commander of the field armies, and Prince of Xiping with a fief of fifteen hundred households. Sheng asked to take Li Chulin with him and to punish Zhang Yi's murderers; the emperor, seeking to pacify former rebels, refused. At Fengxiang he executed more than a dozen mutinous officers, Wang Bin among them. The eunuch Yin Yuanzhen, credentialed for Tong and Hua, had entered Hezhong on his own to parley with Li Huai'guang. Sheng impeached Yin for exceeding his commission and seeking to absolve the arch-traitor, demanding his punishment. He added five reasons not to pardon Huai'guang: "Hezhong lies three hundred li from the capital; Tongzhou commands its approach; a large garrison shows distrust, a small one is too weak—if the east is suddenly threatened, how will we respond? That is the first. Pardon him and we must return Jin, Jiang, Ci, and Sui; Hun Jian and Kang Rizhi would have to be moved again—the second reason. Our strength is not spent, yet we pardon a traitor—the border peoples will think Your Majesty's armies broke and quit of their own accord; with the Uyghurs in the north, Tibet in the west, and Xilie in Huai and Cai—to show weakness now is to invite attack—the third reason. Pardon Huai'guang and every Shuofang soldier will demand back pay and rewards; the treasury is empty and cannot satisfy them—that will provoke fresh rebellion—the fourth. Relieve Hezhong and every circuit that marched will expect rewards; fail to grant them and muttering will turn to mutiny—the fifth. Rice in Hezhong costs five hundred cash a peck; fodder is gone and men starve in the streets; his generals are nearly all dead; another ten days of siege and he will break. Do not spare a mortal enemy to trouble us later. Give me five thousand picked men and ten days' rations, and I will destroy him. The emperor had already assigned the campaign to Ma Sui and Hun Jian and refused.

晟至涇而田希鑒迎謁，執之，並其党石奇等悉伏誅。表右龍武將軍李觀為涇原節度使。晟常曰：「河、隴之陷，非吐蕃能取之，皆將臣遝貪，暴其種落，不得耕稼，日益東徙，自棄之爾。且土無繒絮，人苦役擾，思唐之心，豈有既乎？」因悉家貲懷輯降附，得大酋浪息曩，表以王號。每虜使至，必召息曩於坐，衣大錦袍、金帶，誇異之，虜皆指目歆豔。吐蕃君臣大懼，相與議。尚結贊者善計，乃曰：「唐名將特李晟與馬燧、渾瑊爾，不去之，必為吾患。」即遣使委辭，因燧請和，且求盟，因盟謀執瑊以賣燧，於是結贊大興兵逾隴、岐，無所掠，陽怒曰：「召吾來，乃不牛酒犒軍。」徐引去。以是間晟。晟選兵三千，使王佖伏汧陽旁，擊其中軍，幾獲結贊。晟又遣野詩良輔等攻摧沙堡，拔之。結贊屢乞和，會晟朝京師，奏言：「戎狄無信，不可許。」宰相韓滉與晟合，因請調軍食以給西師。然天子內厭兵，疑將臣生事。亦會滉卒而張延賞當國，故與晟有隙，後雖詔講解，而陰不與也，密言晟不可久持兵，更薦劉玄佐、李抱真經略西北，俾立功以間晟。帝惑其言。

At Jingzhou Tian Xijian came out to greet him; Sheng seized him and executed him along with his accomplice Shi Qi and the rest. He recommended Li Guan, general of the Right Dragon Martial Army, as commissioner of Jingyuan. Sheng often said, "We lost the He-Long region not because Tibet was too strong, but because our officers plundered the tribes, ruined their fields, and drove them east—we threw the land away ourselves. They lack cloth and suffer under our levies—their longing for Tang will never die. He spent his private fortune to win over defectors, took the great chief Langxi'nang under his protection, and had him enfeoffed as a prince. Whenever Tibetan envoys came, he seated Langxi'nang beside him in brocade and gold, a living proof of Tang favor, to the envy of every visitor. The Tibetan court was alarmed and held council. Shang Jiezan, their strategist, said, "Tang has only three great generals—Li Sheng, Ma Sui, and Hun Jian. Until they are removed, they will plague us. He sent humble envoys through Ma Sui to sue for peace and an alliance, planning to seize Hun Jian at the treaty table and turn Ma Sui against Li Sheng. Jiezan marched in force through Long and Qi, found little booty, and pretended outrage: "You invited us and offer no feast for our men." Then he withdrew slowly. Thus he sowed suspicion between Sheng and the court. Sheng sent three thousand men with Wang Tian to ambush near Qianyang, struck the Tibetan center, and nearly took Jiezan himself. He also sent Ye Shi Liangfu to storm Shabo Fort and take it. Jiezan repeatedly sued for peace; when Sheng came to court he warned, "The barbarians are not to be trusted—do not agree. Chancellor Han Huang sided with Sheng and urged shipping grain to the western armies. But the emperor had grown weary of war and suspected his generals of seeking trouble. When Han Huang died, Zhang Yanshang took power; he and Sheng were old enemies. Though the court ordered peace between them, Zhang secretly urged that Sheng must not keep an army, and pushed Liu Xuanzuo and Li Baozhen to win glory in the northwest and eclipse him. The emperor believed him.

貞元三年，帝坐宣政殿引見晟，備冊禮，進拜太尉、中書令，罷其兵。詔晟乘輅謁太廟，視事尚書省，賜良馬、錦彩千計。是歲，瑊與吐蕃盟平涼，虜劫之，瑊挺身免，詔罷燧河東，皆如結贊計雲。通王府長史丁瓊者，嘗為延賞擠抑，內怨望，乃見晟曰：「以公功，乃奪兵柄，夫惟位高者難全，盍早圖之？」晟曰：「君安得不祥之言？」執以聞。

In Zhenyuan year 3 the emperor received Sheng in Xuanzheng Hall with full ceremonial honors, made him Grand Marshal and Grand Councilor, and stripped him of his army. He was ordered to ride in state to the ancestral temple, take up civil duties at the Department of State Affairs, and received thousands of horses and rolls of brocade. That year Hun Jian was seized at a peace conference at Pingliang but escaped alive; Ma Sui was removed from Hedong—all as Shang Jiezan had schemed. Ding Qiong, chief administrator of the Prince of Tong's household, nursed a grudge against Zhang Yanshang and came to Sheng: "After all your service they took your command—great men rarely die in bed. Should you not act while you can? Sheng said, "How dare you speak treason to me?" He had Ding arrested and reported the matter to the throne.

明年，詔為晟立五廟，追賁高祖芝以下祔其主，給牲器床幄，禮官相事。它日，與馬燧見延英，帝嘉其勳，下詔曰：「昔我烈祖，乘乾坤蕩滌，掃隋季荒茀，體元禦極，作人父母。則有熊羆之士，不二心之臣，左右經綸，參翊締構，昭文德，恢武功，威不若，康不乂，用端命于上帝，付畀四方。王業既成，太階既平，乃圖厥容，列于淩煙閣，懋昭績效，表式儀形，以弗忘朝夕，永垂乎來裔。君臣之義，厚莫重焉。歲在己巳秋九月，我行西宮，瞻望崇構，見老臣遺像，顒然肅然，和敬在色。想雲龍之協期，感致業之艱難，睹往思今，取類非遠。且功與時並，才與世生，苟蘊其才，遇其時，尊主庇人，何代蔑有？在中宗時，有如桓彥範等，著輔戴之績；在玄宗時，有如劉幽求等，申弼翼之勳；在肅宗時，有如郭子儀，掃除氛祲。今顧晟等，保寧朕躬，咸宣力肆勤，光復宗祏，訂之前烈，夫豈多謝。闕而未錄，孰旌厥賢？況念功紀德，文祖所為也，在予其曷敢怠？有司宜敘先後，各圖其象於舊臣之次。」命皇太子書其文以賜晟，晟刻石於門。

Next year the court authorized five ancestral temples for Sheng, ennobling his forebears back to High Ancestor Zhi and supplying ritual officers and furnishings. On another day he and Ma Sui were received in Yanying Hall; the emperor praised their service and proclaimed: "Our founding emperor, when Heaven and Earth were in turmoil, swept away the ruins of Sui and took the throne as father and mother to the people. At his side stood warriors fierce as bears and ministers of undivided loyalty, who ordered the realm, helped build the state, spread civil virtue and restored martial glory, brought order where there was none, received Heaven's mandate, and entrusted the empire to the four quarters. When the dynasty was secure and the realm at peace, their portraits were painted for the Lingyan Pavilion, their deeds made luminous, their forms held up as models, never to be forgotten, and handed down to all posterity. No bond is weightier than that between sovereign and minister. In the ninth month of autumn in the jisi year I went to the Western Palace, looked up at the great hall, and saw the portraits of former ministers—grave, dignified faces full of harmony and respect. I recalled the day when liege and servant stood together, felt again how hard it was to build the realm, and looking from past to present found the lesson close at hand. Merit rises with its age and talent appears when the world needs it; wherever ability meets opportunity, men who exalt their sovereign and shield the people have never been wanting in any generation. Under Emperor Zhongzong, men like Huan Yanfan won fame for helping to restore the throne; under Emperor Xuanzong, Liu Youqiu and others earned merit as loyal supporters; and under Emperor Suzong, Guo Ziyi cleared away the clouds of rebellion. Today Li Sheng and his peers have kept me safe, every one of them straining in loyal service until the imperial house was restored—set beside those earlier heroes, words of thanks fall short. If we leave them out of the record, how will their virtue be honored? To remember service and inscribe virtue was the way of our civil founding emperor; how could I, in his place, dare to neglect it? Let the proper offices rank them in due order and paint each portrait in the gallery beside those of earlier ministers." The emperor had the crown prince copy the edict as a gift to Sheng, and Sheng had the text engraved on stone at his gate.

七年，以臨洮未復，請附貫萬年，詔可。九年，薨，年六十七。帝聞流涕，詔百官就第進吊。比大斂，帝手詔，誓以存保世嗣，申告柩前。冊贈太師，諡曰忠武。及葬，又禦望春門臨送，遣謁者宣詔于柩車，百官拜哭於道。憲宗元和中，詔其家與屬籍，以晟配饗德宗廟廷。僖宗狩蜀，倉部員外郎袁皓采晟功烈，為《興元聖功錄》，遍賜諸將，表勵之。

In the seventh year, with Lintao still unrestored, he asked that his household be registered in Wan nian County, and the court agreed. In the ninth year he died, at sixty-seven. When word reached him the emperor wept and ordered the whole bureaucracy to call at his home and mourn. At the lying-in-state the emperor wrote an edict in his own hand, pledging to guard Sheng's descendants, and read it aloud before the bier. He was posthumously made Grand Preceptor with the temple name Loyal Martial. At the funeral the emperor himself went to Wangchun Gate to see the procession off, sent a herald to read the edict beside the hearse, and officials lined the road, bowing and weeping. In Emperor Xianzong's Yuanhe reign his family was entered in the imperial genealogy and Li Sheng was given a place in the sacrifices at Emperor Dezong's temple. When Emperor Xizong fled to Shu, Yuan Hao of the Revenue Bureau compiled Sheng's deeds into the Record of Sacred Merit at Xingyuan and sent copies to every general to stir them to emulation.

晟性疾惡，臨下明。每治軍，必曰：「某有勞，某長於是。」雖廝養小善，必記姓名，尤惡下為朋黨者。篤分義，隆於故舊。嵐州刺史譚元澄嘗有德於晟，後貶死。晟既貴，直其枉，詔贈元澄甯州刺史，晟撫其二子，為成就之。在鳳翔，嘗曰：「魏征以直言致太宗於堯舜上，忠臣也。我誠慕焉。」行軍司馬李叔度曰：「彼縉紳儒者事，公勳德何希是哉？」晟曰：「君失辭。晟幸得備將相，苟容身不言，豈可謂有犯無隱邪？是非唯上所擇爾。」叔度慚。故晟每進對，謇謇盡大臣節，未嘗露於外。治家以嚴，子侄非晨昏不輒見，所與言未嘗及公事。正歲，崔氏女歸寧，讓曰：「爾有家，而姑在堂，婦當治酒食，且以待賓客。」即卻之，不得進。達禮敦教類若此。與馬燧皆在朝，每宴樂恩賜，使者相銜于道。兩家日出無鐘鼓聲，則金吾以聞，少選，使者至，必曰：「今日何不舉樂？」既薨，城鹽州，復故池，以新鹽賜宰相。帝思晟，乃致鹽靈座。其眷遇終始，無與比者。

Sheng detested wickedness and was sharp and fair with his subordinates. Whenever he reviewed the troops he would say, "This man has earned credit; that one is best at such-and-such." Even a groom's small good deed he would note by name, and he loathed cliques among the ranks. He was steadfast in friendship and lavish with old companions. Tan Yuancheng, prefect of Lan, had once done Sheng a kindness and was later demoted and died in exile. After Sheng rose high he cleared Tan's name; the court posthumously made Yuancheng prefect of Ning, and Sheng raised his two sons and saw them established in the world. At Fengxiang he once remarked, "Wei Zheng spoke plainly and lifted Taizong to the level of Yao and Shun—that is a true minister. I sincerely mean to follow his example." His campaigning staff major Li Shudu said, "That is scholars' talk at court—what need has a man of your deeds to envy it?" Sheng replied, "You are wrong to say that. I have been lucky enough to stand among generals and ministers; if I kept silent merely to save myself, could I be said to remonstrate without hiding anything? Whether I am right or wrong is for the emperor alone to decide." Shudu withdrew in shame. Hence in every audience Sheng spoke his mind as a great minister should, yet never paraded his loyalty in public. His household he ran with iron discipline: nephews and sons he saw only at morning and evening greetings, and never discussed state business with them. On New Year's Day a daughter-in-law of the Cui family came to visit her parents; he rebuked her: "You have a home of your own and your husband's mother is still alive—you should be preparing the feast and receiving guests, not here." He turned her away at once and would not let her in. In observing ritual and teaching his kin he was always like this. He and Ma Sui were both at court, and whenever the throne sent feasts, music, or gifts, couriers lined the road between their mansions. If either house failed to strike bells and drums at dawn, the Golden Guard reported it—and soon a palace messenger would arrive asking, "Why no music today?" After his death the court fortified Yanchzhou, reopened the old salt pans, and sent the first new salt to the chancellors. Missing Sheng, the emperor set the salt before his spirit tablet instead. From first to last no subject ever enjoyed such unbroken favor.

有十五子，其聞者願、憲、愬、聽雲。

He had fifteen sons; those who won renown were Yuan, Xian, Su, and Ting.

子愿憲

Sons: Yuan and Xian

願少謙謹。晟立功時，諸子未官，宰相以聞，即日召授太子賓客、上柱國。故事，柱國門列戟，遂父子皆賜。元和初，領夏綏銀宥節度使。政簡而嚴。部有失馬者，願署牒於道，以金購之。三日，失馬並良馬一系署下，且曰：「逸而至，不告，罪當死，謹以良馬贖。」願歸失馬，而縱其良，境內肅然。徙節武寧軍。會伐青、鄆，數有功，以久疾，用愬代之。召為刑部尚書，俄檢校尚書左僕射，節度鳳翔，自是邇聲色而政衰矣。

Yuan was modest and careful from boyhood. When Sheng won his great victory his sons held no posts; the chancellor informed the throne, and that same day Yuan was summoned and made a guest of the crown prince and Pillar of State. By custom a Pillar of State might set halberds at his gate, and father and son received the honor alike. Early in the Yuanhe reign he became military governor of Xia, Sui, Yin, and You. His rule was spare and stern. When a trooper lost a horse, Yuan posted a notice along the roads offering gold for its return. Within three days the missing horse appeared, with a fine mount tied beneath the notice and a note: "The animal wandered here; not reporting it is a capital offense—I offer this good horse in atonement." Yuan returned the lost horse and let the donor keep the fine mount; from that day the circuit was orderly. He was transferred to command the Wuning army. In the campaign against Qing and Yan he won repeated credit, but chronic illness forced his relief by Li Su. Recalled as minister of justice, he was soon made acting vice director of the left secretariat and military governor of Fengxiang; from then on he gave himself to pleasure and his rule decayed.

長慶中，徙宣武。始，張弘靖給其軍頗厚；願至，府庫殫匱，賞賚不及弘靖時，而侈費過之。以威刑操下，用婚家竇緩典帳中兵，驕驁怠遝。牙將李臣則等因眾不忍，夜斬緩首。願聞變，不及巾，與左右數人縋而逸，奪野人乘，馳以免。其家死於兵，三子匿而免。兵既亂，因大掠，推李朅主後務，請諸朝。時責願不職，貶隋州刺史。入為左金吾衛大將軍，復拜河中、晉、絳等節度使。雖嘗以荒侈敗，不能自悛，軍政愈弛，結納權近，官貲隨賂遺輒盡。蒲人怨，且亂。會卒，贈司徒。

During the Changqing reign he was moved to Xuanwu. Zhang Hongjing had once paid the troops handsomely; but when Yuan arrived the treasury was empty, pay fell short of Hongjing's standard, and his personal extravagance exceeded it. He ruled by terror, put his in-law Dou Huan in charge of headquarters troops, and they grew arrogant and slack. The garrison officer Li Chenze and others, unable to endure the abuse, cut off Huan's head one night. Yuan heard the uproar and fled without even tying his cap, lowering himself by rope with a few aides, commandeering a peasant cart, and riding for his life. His family was killed in the violence; three sons hid and survived. The mutineers looted the city, set up Li Qie to run affairs, and asked the court to confirm him. The court blamed Yuan for dereliction and demoted him to prefect of Suizhou. He was recalled as general of the Left Golden Guard and again made military governor of Hezhong, Jin, and Jiang. Though his excess had once ruined him, he would not mend his ways; discipline slackened, he courted the powerful, and every official penny vanished into graft. The people of Pu seethed with resentment and were on the brink of revolt. He died in office and was posthumously made Minister of Education.

憲與愬于諸子號最仁孝。長喜儒，以禮法自矜制。調太原府參軍事、醴泉尉。於頔鎮襄陽，辟署於府。時吳少誠張淮西，獨憚頔威強，時謂憲為之助。又辟魏博田弘正幕府，遷衛州刺史，以治行稱。徙絳州。絳有幻人訹民以亂，憲執誅之。河中兵本仰食於絳，而汾可輸河、渭，歲租與糴常數十萬石，故敖保山為固，民之輸者，十牛不勝一車。憲濱汾相地治新倉，當費二百萬，請留垣縣粟糶河南，以錢還糴絳粟，既免負載勞，又權其贏以完新倉，絳人賴利。入為宗正少卿，副金吾大將軍胡證為送太和公主使。還，獻《回鶻道裏記》，遷太府卿。太和初，繇江西觀察使遷嶺南節度使。

Xian and Su were considered the most filial of the sons. From youth he loved the classics and held himself to ritual and law. He served as adjutant in Taiyuan prefecture and as magistrate of Liquan. When Yu Di held Xiangyang he took Xian onto his staff. Wu Shaocheng then lorded it over the Huai West and feared only Yu Di's strength; men said Xian was the sword behind it. He later joined Tian Hongzheng's staff in Weibo, became prefect of Wei, and won praise for good administration. He was transferred to Jiang. A sorcerer in Jiang stirred the people to revolt; Xian arrested and executed him. Hezhong's army lived on Jiang's grain, yet grain from across the Fen could reach the Yellow and Wei; yearly tax and purchases totaled hundreds of thousands of piculs. Ao Hill was fortified as a depot, and peasants hauling tribute needed ten ox teams where one cart would do. Xian built a new riverside granary that would cost two million cash. He sold Yuan county's surplus grain in Henan, used the proceeds to buy grain for Jiang, spared the people the back-breaking haul over Ao Hill, and applied the profit to finish the warehouse. Jiang benefited greatly. He became vice director of the imperial clan court and, as deputy to Hu Zheng, general of the Golden Guard, escorted Princess Taihe on her mission. On his return he submitted a Record of the Road to the Uyghurs and was made grand steward of the imperial household. Early in the Taihe reign he rose from Jiangxi observer to military governor of Lingnan.

憲，勳伐家子，所曆皆以吏能顯，政績暴著。善治律令，性明恕，詳正大獄，活無罪者數百人。卒官下。

Xian, born to a house of martial glory, distinguished himself everywhere by administrative talent, and his record was brilliant. He mastered the law codes, was clear-minded and merciful, and in major trials saved hundreds of innocent men. He died in office.

子愬

Son: Su

憲宗討吳元濟，唐鄧節度使高霞寓既敗，以袁滋代將，復無功。愬求自試，宰相李逢吉亦以愬可用，遂檢校左散騎常侍，為隋唐鄧節度使。愬以其軍初傷夷，士氣未完，乃不為斥候部伍。或有言者，愬曰：「賊方安袁公之寬，吾不欲使震而備我。」乃令於軍曰：「天子知愬能忍恥，故委以撫養。戰，非吾事也。」眾信而安之。乃斥倡優，未嘗嬉樂。士傷夷病疾，親為營護。蔡人以嘗敗辱霞寓等，又愬名非夙所畏者，易之，不為備。愬沈鷙，務推誠待士，故能張其卑弱而用之。賊來降，輒聽其便，或父母與孤未葬者，給粟帛遣還，勞之曰：「而亦王人也，無棄親戚。」眾願為愬死，故山川險易與賊情偽，一能曉之。

When Emperor Xianzong attacked Wu Yuanji, Gao Xiayu, military governor of Tang and Deng, was beaten; Yuan Zi replaced him and failed again. Li Su volunteered for command; Chancellor Li Fengji backed him, and he was made acting left regular attendant and military governor of Sui, Tang, and Deng. His army was still battered and morale fragile, so Su posted no scouts and kept no battle order. When aides objected he said, "The enemy is still comfortable with Yuan's easy ways—I do not want to startle them into guarding against me." He told the troops, "The emperor knows I can swallow insult, and that is why he sent me to nurse you back to health. Fighting is not my business." The men believed him and settled down. He dismissed entertainers and never joined in revelry. When men were wounded or sick he nursed them himself. The rebels of Cai, having already humiliated Gao Xiayu and his predecessors, and never having feared Li Su's name, despised him and took no precautions. Su was reserved and shrewd, yet he dealt with his men in open sincerity and so could stretch their battered weakness into strength. When defectors came he let them go as they pleased; if parents or kin lay unburied he gave grain and cloth and sent them home, saying, "You are the emperor's subjects too—do not desert your families." His men would have died for him, and he came to know every path, every trick, and every secret of the enemy camp.

居半歲，知士可用，乃請濟師；詔益河中、鄜坊二千騎。於是繕鎧厲兵，攻馬鞍山，下之；拔道口柵，戰嵖岈山，以取爐冶城；入白狗、汶港柵，披楚城，襲朗山，再執守將。平青陵城，禽驍將丁士良，異其才，不殺，署捉生將。士良謝曰：「吳秀琳以數千兵不可破者，陳光洽為之謀也。我能為公取之。」乃禽以獻。於是秀琳舉文城柵降。遂以其眾攻吳房，殘外垣。始出攻，吏曰：「往亡日，法當避。」愬曰：「彼謂吾不來，此可擊也。」既引還，賊以精騎尾擊。愬下馬據胡床，令軍曰：「退者斬。」眾決死戰，射殺其將，賊乃走。或勸遂取吳房，愬曰：「不可。吳房拔，則賊力專，不若留之以分其力。」

After six months he knew the army was ready and asked for reinforcements; the court added two thousand horse from Hezhong and Bin-Fang. He then readied armor and honed weapons, stormed Mount Ma, and captured it. He carried Daokou stockade, fought at Mount Chaya, and won Furnace-Foundry City. He pushed through the White Dog and Wen Harbor palisades, overran Chu city, struck Langshan, and twice took the defending generals prisoner. He reduced Qingling city, captured the fearsome general Ding Shiliang, admired his ability, spared his life, and made him a live-capture officer. Shiliang thanked him and said, "The reason Wu Xiulin's thousands seem unbreakable is that Chen Guangye advises him. I can capture him for you. He did so and presented Guangye as his prize. Xiulin then surrendered the Wencheng palisade. He next led those forces against Wufang and battered its outer ramparts. As he prepared to march, an officer said, "Today is an ill-omened day for campaigning—the law says we should hold back. Li Su replied, "They believe we will not come—that is exactly when we should strike." On the withdrawal, rebel elite horse harried his rear. Su dismounted and planted himself on a camp stool, shouting, "Anyone who falls back dies. The men fought as if death meant nothing, killed an enemy commander with arrows, and the rebels broke. Some urged him to seize Wufang at once; Su said, "No. If we take Wufang, their strength gathers in one place; better leave it and keep them divided."

初，秀琳降，愬單騎抵柵下與語，親釋縛，署以為將。秀琳為愬策曰：「必破賊，非李祐無與成功者。」祐，賊健將也，守興橋柵，其戰嘗易官軍。愬候祐護獲於野，遣史用誠以壯騎三百伏其旁，見羸卒若將燔聚者，祐果輕出，用誠禽而還。諸將素苦祐，請殺之，愬不聽，以為客。待間，召祐及李忠義屏人語，至夜艾。忠義，亦賊將，所謂李憲者。軍中多諫此二人不可近，愬待益厚。乃募死士三千人為突將，自教之。會雨，自五月至七月不止，軍中以為不殺祐之罰，將吏雜然不解。愬力不能獨完祐，乃持以泣曰：「天不欲平賊乎？何見奪者眾邪？」則械而送之朝，表言必殺祐，無與共誅蔡者。詔釋以還愬。愬乃令佩刀出入帳下，署六院兵馬使。六院者，隋、唐兵也，凡三千人，皆山南奇材銳士，故委祐統之。祐捧檄嗚咽，諸將乃不敢言，由是始定襲蔡之謀矣。舊令，敢舍諜者族。愬刊其令，一切撫之，故諜者反效以情，愬益悉賊虛實。

When Xiulin first submitted, Su rode alone to the palisade, spoke with him face to face, cut his bonds himself, and made him a general. Xiulin advised him: "You will not break them without Li You—no one else can do it. You was their toughest commander, holding Xingqiao stockade, and had repeatedly routed imperial forces. Su watched until You was out foraging in the field, then sent Shi Yongcheng with three hundred picked cavalry to lie in wait. When You saw what looked like a small party about to burn supplies, he rode out carelessly—and Yongcheng seized him and brought him in. The other commanders, who had long hated You, begged for his head; Su refused and received him as an honored guest. At the first quiet hour he called You and Li Zhongyi aside and talked with them until deep night. Zhongyi was another rebel commander, known also as Li Xian. Many in camp warned him to keep his distance from the pair; Su drew them closer still. He raised three thousand volunteers for a shock corps and trained them himself. Rain fell without cease from the fifth month through the seventh. The troops took it as heaven's punishment for sparing You, and officers grumbled in open confusion. Unable to shield You alone, Su clasped him and wept: "Does Heaven refuse us victory over these rebels? Why do so many demand his life? He had You bound and sent to the capital with a memorial insisting that killing You would doom any hope of taking Cai. The throne ordered him freed and sent back to Su. Su let him wear a sword at his side day and night and made him marshal of the Six Courts hosts. The Six Courts were the old Sui–Tang corps—three thousand of Shannan's finest blades—and Su placed them entirely under You's command. You took the commission with tears; the other generals fell silent; and the night assault on Cai was at last decided. Old regulations condemned to clan extinction anyone who sheltered enemy spies. Su repealed that rule and treated every turncoat kindly, so enemy agents began reporting back to him—and he learned the rebels' strengths and weaknesses in full.

時李光顏戰數勝，元濟悉銳卒屯洄曲以抗光顏。愬知其隙可乘，乃遣從事鄭澥見裴度告師期，于時元和十一年十月己卯。師夜起，祐以突將三千為前鋒，李忠義副之，愬率中軍三千，田進誠以下軍殿。出文城柵，令曰：「引而東。」六十里止，襲張柴，殲其戍。敕士少休，益治鞍鎧，發刃彀弓。會大雨雪，天晦，凜風偃旗裂膚，馬皆縮栗，士抱戈凍死於道十一二。張柴之東，陂澤阻奧，眾未嘗蹈也，皆謂投不測。始發，吏請所向，愬曰：「入蔡州取吳元濟！」士失色，監軍使者泣曰：「果落祐計。」然業從愬，人人不敢自為計。愬道分輕兵斷橋以絕洄曲道，又以兵絕朗山道。行七十里，夜半至懸瓠城，雪甚，城旁皆鵝鶩池，愬令擊之，以亂軍聲。賊恃吳房、朗山戍，晏然無知者。祐等坎墉先登，眾從之，殺門者，發關，留持柝傳夜自如。黎明，雪止，愬入駐元濟外宅。蔡吏驚曰：「城陷矣！」元濟尚不信，曰：「是洄曲子弟來索褚衣爾。」及聞號令曰：「常侍傳語。」始驚曰：「何常侍得在此！」率左右登牙城，田進誠兵薄之。愬計元濟且望救于董重質，乃訪其家慰安之，使無怖，以書召重質；重質以單騎白衣降，愬待以禮。進誠火南門，元濟請罪，梯而下，檻送京師。

Li Guangyan was winning battle after battle; Wu Yuanji massed his best troops at Huaiqu to hold him. Su saw his opening and sent staff officer Zheng Xie to Pei Du with the battle date: the jimao day of the tenth month, Yuanhe year eleven. The column marched at night: You led three thousand shock troops in the van with Li Zhongyi beside him, Su commanded three thousand in the center, and Tian Jincheng's division formed the rear guard. Leaving Wencheng palisade, he ordered, "March east. They halted sixty li out, surprised Zhangchai, and wiped out its garrison. He let the men breathe, tightened tack and armor, and drew every blade and bow. A blizzard came on. The sky went black. Wind bit through banners and flesh alike. Horses trembled; one man in ten froze stiff still clutching his weapon on the march. Beyond Zhangchai lay bog and fen none of them had ever crossed; many believed they were marching into the unknown. As they set out, an officer asked their objective. Su said, "We are marching on Cai Prefecture to seize Wu Yuanji! The men went pale. The monitor envoy burst into tears: "We have walked straight into You's trap." Yet they were already committed to following Su, and none dared speak for himself. Along the way Su sent light detachments to destroy bridges and sever the Huaiqu road, and posted men to block the Langshan route as well. After seventy li they reached the walls at midnight. Snow lay deep; goose and duck ponds ringed the city. Su had his men beat the water to mask the noise of the assault. The rebels, trusting their outposts at Wufang and Langshan, suspected nothing. You broke the wall and climbed first; the rest poured after. They killed the gate guards, threw open the bar, and left men to beat the night watch as if nothing had changed. At dawn the snow ceased. Su entered and took up station in Yuanji's outer quarters. Cai officials cried, "The city is lost! Wu Yuanji still would not believe it. "Those are just the Huaiqu troops come for winter clothes," he said. Then he heard the call: "A message from the Regular Attendant." Only then did he start in horror: "How can the Regular Attendant be here?" He scrambled with his guards onto the inner citadel; Tian Jincheng's men pressed the attack. Su reckoned Yuanji would look to Dong Chongzhi for relief. He visited Chongzhi's household to calm them, then summoned Chongzhi by letter; Chongzhi came alone, in plain dress, and submitted; Su received him with full courtesy. Jincheng set fire to the south gate. Yuanji begged mercy, climbed down a ladder, and was sent to the capital in a cage.

申、光諸屯尚二萬眾，皆降，愬不戮一人。其為賊執事帳內廚廄廝役，悉用其舊，使不疑。乃屯兵鞠場以俟裴度。至，愬以櫜鞬見，度將避之，愬曰：「此方廢上下分久矣，請因示之。」度以宰相禮受愬謁，蔡人聳觀。乃還屯文城柵。有詔進檢校尚書左僕射、山南東道節度使，封涼國公，實封戶五百，賜一子五品官。

Some twenty thousand men still held the Shen and Guang posts; all surrendered, and Su killed not one. He kept every rebel clerk, cook, groom, and servant in his former post so no one would suspect a trap. He bivouacked his men on the parade ground to await Pei Du. When Pei Du arrived, Su met him with arms ungirt and bow at his back. Du made to step aside. Su said, "These people have forgotten court discipline for years—show them what obedience looks like. Du accepted Su's salute with full ministerial ceremony while the people of Cai looked on, astonished. Su then withdrew his camp to Wencheng palisade. An edict promoted him acting Left Vice Minister of the Secretariat and governor of Shannan East, ennobled him Duke of Liang with five hundred taxable households, and granted a fifth-rank post to one of his sons.

帝方經略隴右，故徙愬節度鳳翔。李師道反，詔愬代願帥武寧軍。旬日踐父兄兩鎮，世以為榮。董重質得罪被斥，愬請賜軍中自效，許之，乃署為牙將。愬與賊戰金鄉，破之。凡十一遇，禽其隊帥五十，俘馘萬計。淄青平，進同中書門下平章事，徙昭義節度，賜第興寧裏。會田弘正守鎮州，乃以愬帥魏博。長慶初，幽、鎮亂，殺弘正，愬素服以令軍曰：「魏人富庶而通於天化者，田公力也。上以其愛人，使往治鎮。且田公撫魏七年，今鎮人不道而戕害之，是無魏也。父兄子弟食田公恩者，何以報之？」眾皆哭。又以玉帶、寶劍遺牛元翼，曰：「此劍吾先人嘗以揃大盜，吾又以平蔡奸。今鎮人逆天，公宜用此夷之也。」元翼感動，謝曰：「敢有不承而愛其死力！」乃下令軍中，勒兵以俟。會愬疾甚，不能軍，詔田布代之，以太子少保還東都。卒，年四十九，贈太尉，諡曰武。

The emperor was planning operations in Longyou and transferred Su to the Fengxiang command. When Li Shidao rose in rebellion, Su was ordered to replace Li Yuan as commander of the Wuning army. Within ten days he held the same two commands his father and brother had once held—a glory the age thought unmatched. Dong Chongzhi had fallen from favor and been dismissed; Su asked that he be allowed to serve in his army and appointed him a headquarters guard. Su met the enemy at Jinxiang and routed them. In eleven engagements he took fifty enemy captains and counted prisoners and heads in the tens of thousands. When Ziqing was pacified he was made co-equal chief minister, transferred to the Zhaoyi command, and given a mansion in Xingning Lane. When Tian Hongzheng held Zhenzhou, Su was assigned to command Weibo. Early in Changqing the Yan and Zhen factions rebelled and slew Hongzheng. Su appeared before the army in mourning white and declared: "Whatever prosperity and loyalty the people of Weibo still know, they owe to Lord Tian. The emperor loved this people and sent him to govern Zhen. Lord Tian ruled Weibo seven years, and now men of Zhen have murdered him without cause—as if they meant to wipe Weibo itself from the map. If you received Lord Tian's kindness—as fathers, sons, brothers—how will you repay it? The army wept. He sent Niu Yuanyi a jade belt and treasured sword, saying, "My forebears used this blade against great outlaws; I used it to bring down the Cai rebels. The men of Zhen defy Heaven—take this sword and level them. Yuanyi was deeply moved and pledged, "I would never refuse—command me to spend my life!" He ordered his army to muster and stand ready. But Su fell gravely ill and could not take the field. Tian Bu was ordered to replace him, and Su returned to Luoyang as Junior Guardian of the Heir Apparent. He died at forty-nine, was posthumously made Grand Preceptor, and was given the temple name Martial.

愬行己儉約。其昆弟賴家勳貴，飾輿馬，矜室廬，唯愬所處乃父時故院，無所增廣。始，晟克京師，市不改肆，愬平蔡，亦如之。功名之奇，近世所未有。晚雖忽於取士，與鄭注善，議者不以掩其賢。

Li Su lived simply and sparingly. His brothers, riding the family's fame, filled their stables and mansions with ornament; Su alone kept his father's old courtyard, unchanged. When Li Sheng took Chang'an the markets never closed their stalls; when Li Su pacified Cai, the same held true. Such achievement was unrivaled in living memory. In his later years he grew careless about recruiting talent and befriended Zheng Zhu, yet critics did not let that obscure his merit.

贊曰：愬得李祐不殺，付以兵不疑，知可以破賊也。祐受任不辭，決策入死，以愬能用其謀也。祐之才，待愬乃顯，故曰平蔡功，愬為多。

The chroniclers write: Li Su spared Li You, entrusted him with troops without hesitation, knowing he alone could break the enemy. You accepted the charge without demur and marched into mortal peril because Su would use his counsel. You's gifts found their field only under Su; thus the glory of pacifying Cai belongs chiefly to Su.

子聽

His son: Ting

聽，字正思，七歲以廕為協律郎，父吏少之，不甚敬，聽輒使鞭之，晟奇其才。長乃辟佐於頔府。吐突承璀討王承宗，以聽為神策行營兵馬使。既戰，斬賊驍將，憲宗壯之，詔圖狀以獻。承璀數問聽計，卒縛盧從史。遷左驍衛將軍，出為蔚州刺史。州有銅冶，自天寶後廢不治，民盜鑄不禁。聽乃開五爐，官鑄錢日五萬，人無犯者。徙安州。會觀察使柳公綽方討蔡，以聽典軍，一一咨之，聲振賊中。召為羽林將軍。

Li Ting, style name Zhengsi, became Director of Harmonics at seven by inherited privilege. When his father's clerks looked down on him, he had them flogged—and Li Sheng marveled at his spirit. When he came of age he entered service as aide in Li Yuan's command. When Tu Gu Chengcui marched against Wang Chengzong, he made Ting cavalry commander of the Divine Strategy field army. In battle he slew a rebel champion. Emperor Xianzong was impressed and ordered his portrait sent to court. Chengcui sought his counsel again and again, and in the end Ting helped capture Lu Congshi. He was promoted to general of the Left Illustrious Cavalry and sent out as prefect of Wei. The prefecture held copper works that had lain idle since the Tianbao years; private casting ran unchecked. Ting reopened five furnaces and had the government mint fifty thousand coins a day; thereafter no one dared cast illicitly. He was transferred to An prefecture. When observation commissioner Liu Gongchuo marched against Cai, he gave Ting command of the army and sought his counsel at every turn; Ting's name resounded through the rebel ranks. He was recalled to serve as a general of the Feathered Forest Guard.

帝討李師道，出聽楚州刺史。淮西兵綿弱，鄆人素易之。聽日整勒，士皆奮。即掩賊不虞，趨漣水，破沭陽，絕龍沮堰，遂取海州，攻朐山，降之，懷仁、東海兩城望風送款。以功兼御史大夫，夏綏銀宥節度使。又徙靈鹽。部有光祿渠，久廞廢，聽始復屯田以省轉餉，即引渠溉塞下地千頃，後賴其饒。進檢校工部尚書。

When the emperor marched against Li Shidao, he sent Li Ting out as prefect of Chu. Huaixi troops were soft, and the Yan men had long despised them. Li Ting drilled them day after day until every man burned to fight. He fell on the enemy by surprise, raced to Lianshui, shattered Shuyang, severed the Longju weir, seized Haizhou, stormed Qushan and took its surrender, and Huairen and Donghai opened their gates at his approach. For these deeds he was made concurrent Censor-in-Chief and commissioner of Xia-Sui-Yin-You. He was next transferred to Ling-Yan. His circuit held the Guanglu Canal, long silted shut; Li Ting revived garrison farms to cut transport costs, reopened the canal, and irrigated a thousand qing of borderland—later generations lived off that plenty. He was promoted to acting Minister of Works.

穆宗初立，幽、鎮反，擇名臣節度太原者代裴度，使統兵北討。始聽為羽林時，有駿馬，帝在東宮，使左右諷取之，聽自以身宿衛，不敢獻。於是帝曰：「李聽往在軍中，不與朕馬，是必可任。」乃授檢校兵部尚書，充河東節度使。敬宗嗣位，改義成軍。太和初，討李同捷，而魏博將丌志沼反，擊其帥史憲誠，詔聽出援，擊殺志沼。以功封涼國公，拜一子五品官。

At Muzong's accession, Youzhou and Zhenzhou rose in revolt; the court chose a famed minister to replace Pei Du at Taiyuan and lead the northern armies. Years before, while Li Ting served in the Feathered Forest, he owned a splendid horse; the crown prince sent attendants to hint he should surrender it, but Ting, bound to guard duty, would not part with it. The emperor then said, "Li Ting once refused me his horse in camp—such a man can surely be trusted." He was made acting Minister of War and military commissioner of Hedong. When Jingzong succeeded, Li Ting was shifted to command Yicheng. Early in Taihe, as the court moved against Li Tongjie, Weibo general Qi Zhizhao rebelled and attacked his commander Shi Xiancheng; Li Ting was ordered to relieve him and slew Zhizhao in battle. For this he was enfeoffed Duke of Liang, and one son received a fifth-rank post.

王廷湊之亂，詔聽悉兵屯貝州，史憲誠懼聽因取道襲之，衷甲候諸郊。聽敕士櫜兵野次，魏人乃安。憲誠既請朝，魏人怨，詔聽兼帥魏博。聽遷延不即赴，魏遂亂，殺憲誠，共推大將何進滔乘城拒守。聽不得入，乃屯館陶。又不設備，魏人襲之，師驚潰，死失殆半，輜械盡棄之，聽晝夜馳以免。於是御史中丞溫造等劾奏魏州亂，憲誠死，職繇於聽，請論如法。天子不罪也，罷為太子少師。

When Wang Tingcou rebelled, Li Ting was ordered to concentrate his forces at Bei; Shi Xiancheng, fearing a flanking strike, posted armored pickets along every approach. Li Ting ordered his men to camp with arms sheathed, and the Weibo troops were reassured. When Xiancheng sought leave to attend court, Weibo turned against him, and Li Ting was ordered to take Weibo as well. Li Ting lingered and would not enter at once; Weibo mutinied, slew Xiancheng, and set the great general He Jintao on the walls to resist. Unable to enter the city, Li Ting encamped at Guantao. He took no precautions; Weibo struck by night, the army broke in panic, nearly half were killed or scattered, and all baggage was abandoned—Li Ting rode day and night to save himself. Vice Censor-in-Chief Wen Zao and others impeached him, blaming Li Ting for the Wei mutiny and Xiancheng's death and demanding punishment under law. The emperor did not punish him but relieved him to heir-apparent Junior Mentor.

聽素以賂遺得權幸心，故多為助力。未幾，拜邠甯節度使。邠署相傳不利治垣舍，前刺史視其壞，莫敢葺。聽曰：「將出鑿凶門，何避治署邪？」亟使完新之，卒無異。改帥武寧軍。有故奴為徐將，不喜聽來，乃先殺親吏之使徐者以沮聽。聽果懼，以疾解，授太子少保。逾歲，節度鳳翔，又徙陳許。鄭注摭其過，詔以太子太保分司東都。開成初，為河中晉絳慈隰節度使。文宗歎曰：「付之兵不疑，退處散地不怨，惟聽為可。」四年，以疾求還，復拜太子太保。卒，年六十一，贈司徒。

Li Ting had long bought favor with gifts among the powerful, and many now spoke for him. Before long he was made military commissioner of Binning. Binning headquarters had a legend that repairing the walls brought misfortune; prefect after prefect had let them crumble and none dared mend them. Li Ting said, "A general marches out through the Gate of Ill Omen—why fear to repair the headquarters?" He had them rebuilt at once, and no ill befell him. He was transferred to command Wuning. A former bondsman of his had become a Xu general and resented Li Ting's coming; he murdered the advance clerk sent to Xu to frighten him off. Li Ting took fright, pleaded illness, and was made heir-apparent Grand Mentor. A year later he took Fengxiang, then was shifted to Chen-Xu. Zheng Zhu collected charges against him, and an edict sent him to the Eastern Capital as honorary heir-apparent Grand Preceptor. At the opening of Kaicheng he was made commissioner of Hezhong-Jin-Jiang-Ci-Long. Emperor Wenzong sighed and said, "Give him an army and he serves without suspicion; set him aside and he bears no grudge—only Li Ting can do that." In the fourth year he asked leave for illness and was again made heir-apparent Grand Preceptor. He died at sixty-one and was posthumously made Minister of Education.

聽治官苛細，急揫斂，頗極所欲，盛飾車馬服玩。或誡之，聽曰：「家聲在人，若示衰薄，恐不見忠功之效，吾欲誇而勸之也。」好方書，擇其驗者，題於帷帟牆屋皆滿。

Li Ting governed with petty severity, squeezed revenue hard, indulged his every whim, and kept carriages, horses, and finery in splendid array. When someone warned him, Li Ting said, "A house's standing rests on its men—show poverty and no one will see what loyalty can earn; I mean to display success and urge others toward it." He loved medical texts, copied every recipe that had proved true, and covered curtains, screens, and walls with them.

聽子琢

Li Ting's son: Li Zhuo

聽子琢，以家閥擢累義昌、平盧、鎮海三節度使，無顯功，不為士大夫稱道。數免復遷。廣明時，沙陀數盜邊，於是琢為宿將，拜檢校尚書右僕射，蔚朔等州招討、都統、行營節度使。徙河陽三城，坐逗撓，下遷刺史，卒。

Li Zhuo, Li Ting's son, rose by pedigree alone through three commands—Yichang, Pinglu, and Zhenhai—without notable merit and won no praise from the literati. He was dismissed again and again, yet always reappointed. In Guangming, as Shatuo raids multiplied, Li Zhuo was treated as a veteran and made acting Right Vice Director of the Secretariat, with overall command of the Wei-Shuo pacification army. He was shifted to the Heyang Three Garrisons, demoted to prefect for slack campaigning, and died in office.

甥王佖

Nephew: Wang Tian

王佖者，晟之甥，武敢，閑騎射。晟在師，佖無不從。攻硃泚於光泰門，賊方銳，佖與李演鏖戰蹀血，賊數北，諸軍乘之，遂大振。以功擢神策將。擊吐蕃有功。晟視佖與子姓等，其給與過之。晟兵罷，佖亦不見用，召為左衛上將軍。元和中，拜朔方、靈鹽節度使。吐蕃欲作烏蘭橋以過師，積材河曲，朔方府常遣兵發其木，委於河，故莫能成。及佖至，虜知其寡謀，乃厚賂之而亟遂功，築月城以守。自是虜歲入為寇，朔方乘障不暇，人以咎佖。在鎮檢下亡術，猜忌多殺人。召還為右衛將軍。故事，將相除徙，皆內出制，故號「白麻」；至佖，以責罷，遂中書進制。久之，卒。

Wang Tian, Li Sheng's nephew, was bold in battle and expert in horsemanship and archery. Wherever Li Sheng marched, Wang Tian followed. At Guangtai Gate, as Zhu Ci's men were at their fiercest, Wang Tian and Li Yan fought until the ground ran with blood; the rebels broke again and again, the allied armies pressed home, and the day was won. For this he was promoted to general of the Divine Strategy Army. He won distinction fighting the Tibetans. Li Sheng treated Wang Tian as one of his own sons and lavished on him more than on any of them. When Li Sheng's armies were stood down, Wang Tian too fell from favor and was recalled as senior general of the Left Guard. In Yuanhe he was made military commissioner of Shuofang and Ling-Yan. The Tibetans tried to build the Wulan Bridge to cut the army's line; they stacked timber along the bend, but Shuofang repeatedly sent men to tear it up and throw it in the river, so the bridge never stood. When Wang Tian arrived, the Tibetans saw he was no strategist; they bribed him heavily, finished the bridge at once, and raised a crescent fort to guard it. Thereafter the Tibetans raided every year; Shuofang's garrisons never rested, and blame fell on Wang Tian. In command he bullied his subordinates without sound policy, grew suspicious, and put many to death. He was recalled to serve as general of the Right Guard. By custom, appointments and dismissals of generals and chancellors came as edicts from within the palace—hence the name "white hemp"; but Wang Tian's dismissal for fault went through the Secretariat instead. In time he died.

贊曰：晟之屯東渭橋也，硃泚盜京師，李懷光反咸陽，河北三叛相王，李納猘河南，李希烈訌鄭、汳。晟無積貲輸糧，提孤軍抗群賊，身佩安危而氣不少衰者，徒以忠誼感人，故豪英樂為之死耳。至師入長安而人不知，雖三王之佐，無進其能，可謂仁義將矣！嗚呼，功能存社祏，不能見信於庸主，卒奪其兵，哀哉！雖然，功蓋天下者，惟退禍可以免。四子世似其勞，是宜有後哉。

The chroniclers write: When Li Sheng held East Wei Bridge, Zhu Ci seized the capital, Li Huai'guang rebelled at Xianyang, the three Hebei warlords crowned one another kings, Li Na ravaged Henan, and Li Xilie rose in Zheng and Bian. Li Sheng had no hoarded stores to feed his men, yet led a lone army against a host of rebels, bearing the empire's fate on his shoulders without faltering—solely because loyalty and righteousness won men's hearts, and heroes gladly died for him. His army entered Chang'an before the people knew he had won—assistants to the sage kings of antiquity could not have surpassed him; he was truly a general of benevolence and righteousness. Alas—a man whose merit saved the altars of state could not win a mediocre emperor's trust and was stripped of his army at last. How bitter! Yet for one whose deeds overshadow the realm, only withdrawal can escape ruin. His four sons bore his burden down the generations—surely such a house deserved posterity.

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