Volume 148 Biographies 35: Dong Jun, Yan Shi

董俊子文蔚文用文忠文直

Dong Jun—his sons Wenwei, Wenyong, Wenzhong, and Wenzhi

董俊字用章，真定藁城人。少力田，長涉書史，善騎射。金貞祐間，邊事方急，藁城令立的募兵，射上中者拔為將。衆莫能弓，獨俊一發破的，遂將所募兵迎敵。歲乙亥，國王木華黎帥兵南下，俊遂降。

Dong Jun, whose courtesy name was Yongzhang, came from Gaocheng in Zhending Prefecture. As a boy he farmed; in manhood he took up learning and history and became adept at horsemanship and the bow. In the Jinyou period of Jin, when the frontier was in crisis, Magistrate Li Li of Gaocheng raised levies and promised command to anyone who shot through the target. No one else could bend the bow; Jun alone hit the mark at first shot, then led his recruits against the enemy. In yihai (1215) Prince Muqali marched south, and Jun submitted.

己卯，以勞擢知中山府事，佩金虎符。金將武僊據真定，定武諸城皆應僊。俊率衆夜入真定，逐僊走之，定武諸城復去僊來附。庚辰春，金大發兵益僊，治中李全叛中山應之。俊軍時屯曲陽，僊銳氣來戰，敗之黃山下，僊脫走。獻捷于木華黎，由是僊以窮降。木華黎承制授俊龍虎衛上將軍、行元帥府事，駐藁城。俊嘗謁木華黎曰：「武僊黠不可測，終不為我用，請備之。」木華黎然其言，承制授左副元帥。陞藁城縣為永安州，號其衆為匡國軍，事一委俊。己酉，僊果殺都元帥史天倪，據真定以叛，旁郡縣皆為僊守。俊提孤軍居反側間，戰士不滿千人，拒守永安。僊攻之期年，無所利，乃縱兵蹂禾稼，俊呼語之曰：「汝欲得民，而奪之食，無道賊不為也。」僊慚而去，俊出兵掩擊之，僊敗走。久之，俊復夜入真定，僊走死，乃納史天倪弟天澤為帥。

In jimao (1219) he was promoted for distinguished service to provisional governor of Zhongshan and given a golden tiger tally. The Jin general Wu Xian occupied Zhending, and the towns of Ding and Wu followed him. Jun led his force into Zhending by night, drove Wu Xian out, and the Ding-Wu region towns once more broke with Xian and rallied to him. In the spring of gengchen (1220) Jin poured reinforcements into Wu Xian's camp, and Vice Commissioner Li Quan of Zhongshan turned rebel in his support. Jun's troops were encamped at Quyang when Wu Xian attacked in force; Jun routed him below Yellow Mountain, and Xian fled. He reported the victory to Muqali, and Wu Xian, driven to desperation, submitted. By imperial commission Muqali made Jun General of the Dragon-Tiger Guard and acting commander of the marshal's headquarters, with his base at Gaocheng. Jun once told Muqali, "Wu Xian is treacherous and cannot be trusted; he will never truly serve us. Please guard against him." Muqali agreed and, by commission, appointed him Left Vice Marshal. Gaocheng was raised to Yong'an Prefecture, his troops were named the Army for the Restoration of the State, and Jun was given full authority. In jiyou (1229) Wu Xian murdered Chief Marshal Shi Tianni, rebelled at Zhending, and the surrounding prefectures and counties all fell to him. Jun held Yong'an with a bare thousand men, cut off amid enemies on every side. After a year of siege Wu Xian gained nothing and sent his men to trample the crops; Jun shouted across the lines, "You want the people's loyalty yet steal their grain—only a lawless brigand acts thus." Ashamed, Wu Xian withdrew; Jun struck from cover and drove him off in defeat. In time Jun again entered Zhending by night; Wu Xian fled to his death, and Jun installed Shi Tianni's younger brother Tianze as commander.

壬辰，會諸軍圍汴。明年，金主棄汴奔歸德，追圍之；金兵夜出，薄諸軍於水，俊力戰死焉，時年四十有八。

In renchen (1232) the allied armies converged to besiege Bianliang. The following year the Jin emperor abandoned Bian for Guide; the Mongols pursued and laid siege; Jin forces sortied by night and pressed the allies at the river; Jun fought to the death. He was forty-eight.

俊早喪父，事母以孝聞。歲時廟祭，非疾病，跪拜必盡禮；子雖孩乳，亦使之序拜，曰：「祀，以孝先也，禮宜如是。」待族親故人，皆有恩意；里夫家僮，亦接之有道。克汴時，以侍其軸為賢，延歸教諸子。嘗曰：「射，百日事耳；詩、書，非積學不通。」屢誡諸子曰：「吾一農夫耳，遭天下多故，徒以忠義事人，僅立門戶。深願汝曹力田讀書，勿求非望，為吾累也。」

Jun lost his father young and was renowned for devotion to his mother. At the seasonal sacrifices he observed every kneeling and bowing rite unless illness prevented it; even nursing infants he made bow in turn, saying, "Worship begins with filial piety—the rites demand no less." He treated clan kin and old friends with steady kindness; even village laborers and household servants he addressed with propriety. After the fall of Bian he esteemed Shiqi Zhou and brought him home to instruct his sons. He said once, "Archery is mastered in a hundred days; the Odes and Documents require years of study before they yield their meaning." He often warned his sons, "I am only a farmer who, in a time of turmoil, served with loyalty and barely raised this house. Work the land, read your books, and do not reach beyond your station—that would be my ruin."

俊忠實自許，不為夷險少移，臨陣，勇氣懾衆，立矢石間，怡然若無事，雖中傷亦不為動。每慕馬援為人，曰：「馬革裹屍，援固可壯。」故戰必持矛先士卒，或諫止之，俊曰：「我人臣也，敵在前，不死，乃趨安脫危乎！」先是，戊子歲，朝於行在，諸將獻戶口，各增數要利，吏請如衆，俊曰：「民實少而欺以數多，他日上需求無應，必重斂以承命，是我獨利，而民日困也。」行元帥府時，狂男子三百餘人期日作亂，事覺，戮其渠魁，餘並釋之。深、冀間妖人惑衆，圖為不軌，連逮者數萬人，有司議當族，俊力請主者，但誅首惡。永安節度使劉成叛降武僊於威州，俊下令曰：「逆者一人，餘能去逆，即忠義士，與其家財，仍奏官之。」衆果去成降。沃州民寨天臺為盜，既破降之，他將利其子女，欲掠之，俊曰：「城降而俘其家，仁者不為也。」衆義不取。南征時，人多歸俊願為奴者，既全其家，歸悉縱為民。鄰境人有被掠賣者，亦與直贖還之。其天性之美類如此。

Jun prided himself on steadfast loyalty unmoved by fortune or peril; in battle his courage awed all ranks, and amid flying arrows and stones he stood serene, unmoved even when wounded. He admired Ma Yuan and said, "To die on campaign and be wrapped in horsehide—there was a man." In every fight he led with spear in hand; when men urged caution he replied, "I am the emperor's servant; with the enemy before me, how can I seek safety and leave danger to others?" In wuzi (1228), at the mobile headquarters, commanders inflated household counts for profit; clerks urged Jun to follow suit. He refused: "The people are few; if we lie about their numbers, the court will demand more than we can supply and levy them into ruin. I alone would profit while they starve." At the marshal's headquarters more than three hundred men plotted a rising; when exposed, only the ringleaders were executed and the rest freed. Between Shen and Ji, sorcerers stirred the people to sedition; tens of thousands were arrested and officials proposed clan extermination; Jun pleaded that only the ringleaders be put to death. When Commissioner Liu Cheng of Yong'an defected to Wu Xian at Weizhou, Jun proclaimed, "One man rebelled; whoever leaves him is loyal—I will restore their property and recommend them for office." The troops abandoned Cheng and submitted. When bandits led by Zhai Tiantai in Wo Prefecture surrendered, other generals meant to seize their families; Jun said, "A humane commander does not plunder those who have submitted." The troops, shamed, took nothing. On the southern campaign many offered themselves as his bondsmen; once their families were safe he freed them all. He also paid fair ransom for people seized and sold in neighboring districts and sent them home. Such was the quality of his nature.

俊器度弘遠，善戰而不妄殺，故人樂為之用。大小百戰，無不克捷。為政寬明，見人善治田廬，必召與歡語，有惰者，則怒罰之，故其部完實，民惟恐其去也。贈翊運效節功臣、太傅、開府儀同三司、上柱國，封壽國公，諡忠烈。加贈推忠翊運效節功臣、太傅、開府儀同三司、上柱國，改封趙國公。子文炳、文蔚、文用、文直、文忠，文炳自有傳。

Jun's vision was broad; he fought well yet seldom killed, and men were glad to follow him. In a hundred battles large and small he was never defeated. His rule was lenient and clear; he praised diligent farmers and punished the idle, so his district prospered and the people dreaded only his departure. Posthumously he was made Duke of Shou, styled Loyal and Fierce, with the title Meritous Minister Who Supports Fortune and Shows Fidelity, Grand Tutor, and Pillar of the State. Later honors added Meritous Minister Who Pushes Loyalty and Supports Fortune and Shows Fidelity and changed his fief to Duke of Zhao. His sons were Wenbing, Wenwei, Wenyong, Wenzhi, and Wenzhong; Wenbing has a separate biography.

文蔚字彥華，俊之次子也。重厚寡言，不事嬉戲，立志勤苦，讀書忘倦。及長，善騎射，膂力絕人。事母至孝，接人謙恭，凡所與交，貴賤長幼，待之無異；至於一揖，必正容端體，俛首幾至于地，徐徐起拱，人所難能。兄文炳為藁城令，厲精於政，家務悉委之，凡供給祭祀賓客之事，無不盡心。

Wenwei, whose courtesy name was Yanhua, was Jun's second son. Grave and sparing of speech, he shunned idle play, applied himself to study, and read until weariness left him. Grown to manhood, he excelled at riding and archery and possessed matchless strength. He was deeply filial toward his mother and humble with all he met, treating high and low, old and young, without distinction; in a single bow he composed his bearing, bent nearly to the ground, and rose slowly in salute—conduct few could match. His elder brother Wenbing, magistrate of Gaocheng, devoted himself to office and entrusted all household affairs to Wenwei, who managed sacrifices and guests with perfect care.

辛丑，起民兵南征，文炳命文蔚率十有七人，私整鞍馬衣甲，自為一隊，與衆軍渡淮。甲寅，世祖收大理，還駐六盤山。文炳以文蔚孝謹公勤，可委以事，解所佩金符以讓，帝嘉賞之，授藁城等處行軍千戶。南鎮鄧州，與荊、襄接境，沿邊城壁未築。是年冬十一月，修光化；乙卯，立毗陽；丙辰，築棗陽。文蔚悉緫之，治板幹，具畚鍤，儲餱糧，運木石，程其工力，時其饑飽，藥其疾病，見執役者，常以善言撫之，弗事威猛。衆咸感曰：「他將領役，鞭箠怒辱，不恤困苦。今董侯慈惠若此，我曹安忍負之。」各盡力成之。

In xinchou (1241) militia marched south; Wenbing ordered Wenwei to lead seventeen men who equipped themselves as a private squad and crossed the Huai with the host. In jiayin (1254) Kublai conquered Dali and encamped at Liupan Mountain on his return. Wenbing, finding Wenwei filial, careful, and fit for trust, gave him his own golden tally; the emperor approved and made Wenwei marching chiliarch of Gaocheng and neighboring districts. He was posted south at Deng Prefecture on the Jing-Xiang frontier, where the border walls were still unbuilt. That winter, in the eleventh month, he repaired Guanghua; in yimao (1255) he established Piyang; in bingchen (1256) he built Zaoyang. Wenwei directed everything—timber, tools, rations, stone, labor schedules, meals, and medicine—and spoke kindly to every worker rather than ruling by fear. The laborers said among themselves, "Other commanders beat and insult us without pity. But Lord Dong treats us with such kindness—how can we fail him?" Each gave his utmost until the work was done.

丁巳，攻襄，樊城南據漢江，北阻湖水，卒不得渡。文蔚夜領兵士，於湖水狹隘之處，伐木拔根，立於水，實以薪草為橋梁，頃之即成，至曉，師悉渡，圍已合，城中大驚異之。文蔚復統拔都軍以當前行，奪其外城，論功居最。己未，憲宗伐宋，入川蜀，文蔚奉詔，將鄧之選兵西上，由褒斜歷劍閣，而劍、閬諸州，平地不能守，置州事於山。師行大獲、雲頂、長寧、苦竹諸寨，長驅而前，至釣魚山，崖壁巉峭，惟一徑可登，恃險阻未即降。帝命攻之，文蔚以次往攻，迺激厲將士，挾雲梯，冒飛石，履崎嶇以登，直抵其寨苦戰，頃之，兵士被傷，迺還。帝親見之，加以賞賚。

In dingsi (1257) they attacked Xiangyang; Fancheng lay south of the Han with lakes to the north, and the army could not cross. Wenwei led men by night to a narrow stretch of lake, drove pilings of felled trees packed with brush, bridged the water in hours, and by dawn the whole army had crossed; the city was thunderstruck. He again led the Badu vanguard, took the outer city, and ranked first in merit. In jiwei (1259) Möngke invaded Song and entered Sichuan; Wenwei led Deng's picked troops west by Baoxie and Jianmen Pass; in Jian, Lang, and neighboring prefectures the plains could not be held and government was set on the heights. The army took the stockades of Dahuo, Yunding, Changning, and Kuzhu and pressed on to Diaoyu Mountain, whose cliffs allowed only a single path; the defenders held the heights and would not yield. Ordered to attack, Wenwei roused his men, raised scaling ladders, braved stones on the steep path, and fought at the stockade until his troops were wounded and he withdrew. The emperor witnessed it and rewarded him.

中統二年，世祖置武衛軍，文蔚以鄧兵入為千戶。帝北狩，留屯上都。三年，李璮反，據濟南，文蔚以麾下軍圍其南面，春秋力戰，城破璮誅，奏功還。至元五年七月十七日，以疾卒于上都之炭山。弟文忠，時為樞密僉院，乞護喪南還，帝甚憫之。泰定中，贈明威將軍、僉右衛使司事、上騎都尉、隴西郡伯。

In the second year of Zhongtong (1261) Kublai formed the Martial Guard Army, and Wenwei entered as chiliarch with his Deng troops. When the emperor went north on campaign Wenwei remained at Shangdu. In the third year (1262) Li Tan rebelled at Jinan; Wenwei besieged the south gate, fought through the seasons, and when the city fell returned to report his merit. On the seventeenth day of the seventh month, fifth year of Zhiyuan (1268), he died of illness at Tanshan near Shangdu. His brother Wenzhong, then vice-director of the Bureau of Military Affairs, begged to escort the coffin south; the emperor was deeply moved. Under Emperor Taiding he was posthumously made General of Illustrious Might, vice-director of the Right Guard, Chief Commandant of Cavalry, and Baron of Longxi.

文用字彥材，俊之第三子也。生十歲，父死，長兄文炳教諸弟有法。文用學問早成，弱冠試詞賦中選。時以真定藁城奉莊聖太后湯沐，庚戌，太后命擇邑中子弟來上，文用始從文炳謁太后于和林城。世祖在潛藩，命文用主文書，講說帳中，常見許重。

Wenyong, whose courtesy name was Yancai, was Jun's third son. His father died when he was ten; his eldest brother Wenbing reared the younger brothers with discipline. Wenyong's scholarship ripened early; in his youth he passed the poetry-and-prose examination. Gaocheng in Zhending was then the bath fief of Empress Dowager Zhuangsheng; in gengxu (1250) she ordered youths from the district to court, and Wenyong first accompanied Wenbing to greet her at Helin. Kublai, still prince, put Wenyong in charge of documents and lectured with him in his tent, often showing him marked favor.

癸丑，世祖受命憲宗自河西征雲南大理。文用與弟文忠從軍，督糧械，贊軍務。丁巳，世祖令授皇子經，是為北平王、雲南王也。又命召遺老竇默、姚樞、李俊民、李冶、魏璠於四方。己未，伐宋，文用發沿邊蒙古、漢人諸軍，理軍需。將攻鄂州，宋賈似道、呂文德將兵來拒，水陸軍容甚盛。九月，世祖臨江閱戰，文炳求先進戰，文用與文忠固請偕行，世祖親料甲冑，擇大艦授之，大破宋師。

In guichou (1253) Kublai received Möngke's commission to march from Hexi against Dali in Yunnan. Wenyong and his brother Wenzhong followed the campaign, overseeing grain and matériel and advising on military affairs. In dingsi (1257) Kublai ordered him to teach the princes—the future Prince of Beiping and Prince of Yunnan. He also ordered summons to the surviving scholars Dou Mo, Yao Shu, Li Junmin, Li Ye, and Wei Fan from every quarter. In jiwei (1259), on the Song campaign, Wenyong mobilized Mongol and Han troops along the frontier and arranged supplies. As they prepared to attack Ezhou, Jia Sidao and Lü Wende of Song met them with a formidable land and river force. In the ninth month Kublai reviewed the battle from the river; Wenbing asked to lead the assault; Wenyong and Wenzhong begged to go with him; the emperor armed them himself, gave them the largest ships, and they shattered the Song force.

至元改元，召為西夏中興等路行省郎中。中興自渾都海之亂，民間相恐動，竄匿山谷。文用至，鎮之以靜，乃為書置通衢諭之，民乃安。始開唐來、漢延、秦家等渠，墾中興、西涼、甘、肅、瓜、沙等州之土為水田若干，於是民之歸者戶四五萬，悉授田種，頒農具；更造舟置黃河中，受諸部落及潰叛之來降者。

When Zhiyuan began he was summoned as director of the Secretariat of the Xingzhong and neighboring circuits of Western Xia. Since Hunduhai's rebellion the people had fled in panic to the mountains. Wenyong restored calm, posted proclamations on the highways, and the people settled. He opened the Tanglai, Hanyan, and Qinjia canals and reclaimed paddy in Xingzhong, Xiliang, Gan, Su, Gua, Sha, and neighboring prefectures; forty or fifty thousand households returned and received land, seed, and tools; he built boats on the Yellow River to receive tribesmen and those who surrendered after defeat or rebellion.

時諸王只必鐵木兒鎮西方，其下縱橫，需索無筭，省臣不能支，文用坐幕府，輒面折以法。其徒積忿，譖文用於王，王怒，召文用，使左右雜問之，意叵測。文用曰：「我天子命吏，非汝等所當問，請得與天子所遣為王傅者辨之。」王即遣其傅訊文用。其傅中朝舊臣，不肯順王意。文用謂之曰：「我漢人，生死不足計。所恨者，仁慈寬厚如王，以重戚鎮遠方，而其下毒虐百姓，凌暴官府，傷王威名，於事體不便。」因歷指其不法者數十事，其傅驚起，去白王，王即召文用謝之曰：「非郎中，我殆不知。郎中持此心事朝廷，宜勿怠。」自是譖不行而省府事頗立。二年，入奏經略事宜還，以上旨行之，中興遂定。

At that time Prince Zhibie Timur held the west; his men ran wild with endless demands the provincial officials could not meet. Dong Wenyong, serving on the commandery staff, repeatedly confronted them and checked them by law. His followers nursed their grievances and denounced Dong Wenyong to the prince. The prince flew into a rage, summoned him, and had his attendants cross-question him on all manner of charges—no one could tell what they meant to do. Dong Wenyong said, "I am an officer appointed by the Son of Heaven—not someone you may question. Let me settle this with the tutor the emperor sent to serve the prince." The prince immediately sent his tutor to question Dong Wenyong. The tutor was a veteran official of the central court and refused to bend to the prince's wishes. Dong Wenyong told him, "I am a Han man—life and death are nothing to me. What I regret is that a prince as benevolent and magnanimous as you, a royal kinsman holding distant territory, should have subordinates who brutalize the people and bully the officials—damaging your standing and making everything harder." He then listed dozens of their illegal acts one by one. The tutor rose in alarm, went to tell the prince, and the prince at once summoned Dong Wenyong and apologized: "But for you, Langzhong, I would never have known. Langzhong, keep this loyalty in mind for the court's sake—and do not slacken." After that slander no longer carried the day, and the provincial administration took solid shape. In the second year he went to court to report on frontier strategy and returned; acting on the emperor's orders, he settled the Xingzhong region.

八年，立司農司，授山東東西道巡行勸農使。山東自更叛亂，野多曠土，文用巡行勸勵，無間幽僻。入登州境，見其墾辟有方，以郡守移剌某為能，作詩表異之。於是列郡咸勸，地利畢興，五年之間，政績為天下勸農使之最。十二年，丞相安童奏文用為工部侍郎，代紇石里。紇石里，阿合馬私人也。其徒既讒間安童罷相，即使鷹監奏曰：「自紇石里去，工部侍郎不給鷹食，鷹且瘦死。」帝怒，促召治之，因急捕文用入見，帝望見曰：「董文用乃為爾治鷹食者耶！」置不問，別令取給有司。

In the eighth year the Directorate of Agriculture was established, and he was made itinerant commissioner to promote farming in the Eastern and Western Shandong circuits. After repeated rebellions Shandong had much untilled land; Dong Wenyong toured the circuit to encourage farming, leaving no remote corner untouched. Entering Dengzhou, he saw land well cleared and planted; judging the prefect Yelü capable, he wrote a poem to honor him. Every prefecture followed suit, and the land's potential was fully realized; within five years his record ranked first among all agriculture commissioners in the realm. In the twelfth year Chancellor An Tong recommended Dong Wenyong as Vice Minister of Works to replace Hesiheri. Hesiheri was Ahmad's own man. Once his faction had slandered An Tong out of office, they had the hawk keeper report: "Since Hesiheri left, the Vice Minister of Works has not fed the hawks—they will soon starve." Kublai flew into a rage and ordered him seized at once; they hurried Dong Wenyong in to audience. The emperor took one look and said, "Is Dong Wenyong really the man who feeds your hawks!" He dropped the matter and ordered the proper offices to supply the hawks instead.

十三年，出文用為衛輝路緫管，佩金虎符。郡當衝要，民為兵者十之九，餘皆單弱貧病，不堪力役。會初得江南，圖籍、金玉、財帛之運，日夜不絕于道，警衛輸輓，日役數千夫。文用憂之曰：「吾民弊矣，而又重妨耕作，殆不可。」乃從轉運主者言：「州縣吏卒，足以備用，不必重煩吾民也。」主者曰：「汝言誠然，萬一有不虞，則罪將誰歸！」文用即手書具官姓名保任之。民得以時耕，而運事亦不廢。諸郡運江淮粟于京師，衛當運十五萬石，文用曰：「民籍可役者無幾，且江淮風水，舟不能以時至，而先為期會，是未運而民已困矣。」乃集旁郡通議，立驛置法，民力以舒。

In the thirteenth year Dong Wenyong was posted as commissioner of Weihui Circuit, bearing the golden tiger tally. The prefecture stood at a strategic crossroads; nine in ten of the people were soldiers, and the rest were solitary, weak, poor, or sick—unable to bear corvée labor. Just then the newly conquered Jiangnan was sending maps, registers, gold, jade, and treasure along the roads without pause day or night; escorts and transport crews pressed thousands of men into service each day. Dong Wenyong worried and said, "Our people are worn out, and this again badly interferes with farming—it cannot go on." He therefore told the transport commissioner, "The clerks and soldiers of the prefectures and counties are enough—we need not burden our people again." The commissioner said, "What you say is true—but if anything goes wrong, who will bear the blame!" Dong Wenyong immediately wrote out by hand the names and offices of every official who would guarantee the arrangement. The people could farm on time, and transport was not disrupted. Every prefecture was shipping Jianghuai grain to the capital; Weihui was assigned 150,000 piculs. Dong Wenyong said, "Few on the registers can be pressed into service; moreover, wind and water on the Jianghuai route keep boats from arriving on schedule—yet deadlines are fixed in advance, so the people are exhausted before a single load moves." He then convened neighboring prefectures for joint discussion, established relay-station rules, and eased the people's burden.

十四年，詣汴漕司言事。適漕司議通沁水北東合流御河以便漕者，文用曰：「衛為郡，地最下，大雨時行，沁水輒溢出百十里間；雨更甚，水不得達于河，即浸淫及衛，今又引之使來，豈惟無衛，將無大名、長蘆矣。」會朝廷遣使相地形，上言：「衛州城中浮屠最高者，纔與沁水平，勢不可開也。」事遂寢。

In the fourteenth year he went to the Bianliang grain transport office to report on affairs. Just then the transport office was debating diverting the Qin River north and east to join the Imperial Canal for easier shipping. Dong Wenyong said, "Weihui is the lowest ground in the region; when heavy rains come, the Qin River always overflows for a hundred li or more; when the rains grow worse the water cannot reach the Yellow River and spreads into Weihui—now you would also draw it here; Weihui will not be the only place lost—Daming and Changlu will go too." The court then sent envoys to survey the terrain; they reported, "The tallest pagoda in Weizhou city is only level with the Qin River—the land makes opening the channel impossible." The plan was dropped.

十六年，受代歸田里，茅茨數椽，僅避風雨，讀書賦詩，怡然燕居。裕宗在東宮，數為臺臣言：「董文用勳舊忠良，何以不見用！」十八年，臺臣奏起文用為山北遼東道提刑按察使，不赴。

In the sixteenth year, when his term ended, he returned home to a few thatched beams barely sheltering him from wind and rain, reading and writing poetry in contented retirement. Crown Prince Zhaozong, in the Eastern Palace, repeatedly told censorate officials, "Dong Wenyong is a meritorious veteran and a loyal man—why is he not being used!" In the eighteenth year the censorate recommended recalling Dong Wenyong as judicial commissioner of the Shanbei Liaodong circuit; he did not go.

十九年，朝廷選用舊臣，召文用為兵部尚書。自是朝廷有大議，未嘗不與聞。二十年，江淮省臣有欲專肆而忌廉察官，建議行臺隸行省，狀上，集朝臣議之。文用議曰：「不可。御史臺，譬之卧虎，雖未噬人，人猶畏其為虎也。今虛名僅存，紀綱猶不振，一旦摧抑之，則風采薾然，無可復望者矣。昔阿合馬用事時，商賈賤役，皆行賄入官，及事敗，欲盡去其人，廷議以為不可，使阿合馬售私恩，而朝廷驟斂怨也。乃使按察司劾去其不可者，然後吏有所憚，民有所赴訴。則是按察司者，國家當飭勵之，不可摧抑也。」悉從文用議。

In the nineteenth year the court drew on former officials and summoned Dong Wenyong as Minister of War. From then on he was always consulted whenever the court debated major affairs. In the twentieth year Jianghuai provincial officials, wanting free rein and resenting the supervisory censors, proposed placing the regional censorate under the provincial administration; the memorial went up and court officials were assembled to debate it. Dong Wenyong argued, "That cannot be done. The Censorate is like a crouching tiger—though it has not yet bitten anyone, people still fear it as a tiger. Today only the name survives, and discipline is still weak—crush it once and its authority will wither, with nothing left to hope for. When Ahmad was in power, merchants and menials all bought their way into office; when the scandal broke, some wanted to purge them all, but court debate held that impossible—it would let Ahmad dispense private favors while the court suddenly collected hatred. Instead they had the surveillance commissions impeach the unfit; only then did officials feel restraint and the people have somewhere to bring grievances. The surveillance commissions are what the state should strengthen—not suppress." The court adopted Dong Wenyong's position entirely.

轉禮部尚書，遷翰林、集賢二院學士，知祕書監。時中書右丞盧世榮，以貨利得幸權要為貴官，陰結貪刻之黨，以錙銖掊克為功，乃建議曰：「我立法治財，視常歲當倍增，而民不擾也。」詔下會議，人無敢言者。文用陽問曰：「此錢取於右丞之家耶？將取之於民耶？取於右丞之家，則不敢知；若取諸民，則有說矣。牧羊者，歲嘗兩剪其毛，今牧人日剪其毛而獻之，則主者固悅其得毛之多矣，然而羊無以避寒熱，即死且盡，毛又可得哉！民財亦有限，取之以時，猶懼其傷殘也。今盡刻剝無遺，猶有百姓乎！」世榮不能對。丞相安童謂坐中曰：「董尚書真不虛食俸祿者。」議者出，皆謝文用曰：「君以一言，折聚斂之臣，而厚邦本，真仁人之言哉。」世榮竟以是得罪。

He was transferred to Minister of Rites, promoted to academician of the Hanlin and Jixian academies, and made director of the Directorate of Archives. At that time Right Vice Minister Lu Shirong, having won favor through profit and risen by attaching himself to the powerful, secretly gathered a faction of greedy and harsh men and made squeezing every coin his achievement. He proposed, "If I establish laws to govern revenue, it should double an ordinary year's take—and the people will not be disturbed." An edict went down for joint discussion, and no one dared speak up. Dong Wenyong asked as if casually, "Is this money to come from the Vice Minister's own household? Or from the people? If it comes from the Vice Minister's household, I dare not inquire further; but if it comes from the people, then I have something to say. A shepherd shears wool twice a year; now suppose the herdsman shears wool every day and presents it—the owner will be pleased at getting so much wool, yet the sheep cannot ward off cold and heat and will soon all die—then what wool will there be! The people's wealth is limited too; even when taken in season one still fears depletion. Now you would scrape them clean—will there still be any common people left!" Lu Shirong had no reply. Chancellor An Tong said to those present, "Minister Dong truly does not eat his salary for nothing." When the deliberators left, they all thanked Dong Wenyong: "With one sentence you have rebutted the minister of exactions and strengthened the state's foundation—words worthy of a true man." Lu Shirong ultimately fell from power on this account.

二十二年，拜江淮行中書省參知政事，文用力辭。帝曰：「卿家世非他人比。朕所以任卿者，不在錢穀細務也，卿當察其大者，事有不便，但言之。」文用遂行。行省長官者，素貴多傲，同列莫敢仰視，跪起稟白，如小吏事上官。文用至，則坐堂上，侃侃與論是非可否，無所遷就，雖數忤之，不顧也。有以帝命建佛塔於宋故宮者，有司奉行甚急，天大雨雪，入山伐木，死者數百人，猶欲併建大寺。文用謂其人曰：「非時役民，民不堪矣，少徐之如何？」長官者曰：「參政奈何格上命耶？」文用曰：「非敢格上命，今日之困民力而失民心者，豈上意耶！」其人意沮，遂稍寬其期。二十三年，朝廷將用兵海東，徵斂益急，有司大為奸利。文用請入奏事，大略言：「疲國家可寶之民力，取僻陋無用之小邦。」列其條目甚悉。言上，事遂罷。

In the twenty-second year he was appointed vice administrator of the Jianghuai branch secretariat; Dong Wenyong firmly declined. Kublai said, "Your family and generation are not like others. I appoint you not for grain and coin in petty detail—you should watch the larger matters; where anything is wrong, speak out." Dong Wenyong then took up the post. Branch secretariat chiefs had long been high-born and mostly arrogant; colleagues dared not meet their eyes—kneeling, rising, and reporting like petty clerks before a superior. When Dong Wenyong arrived, he sat in the hall and spoke plainly on right and wrong without yielding, often offending them—and paid no heed. By imperial command a Buddhist pagoda was to be built on the site of the former Song palace; the offices rushed to obey—in heavy rain and snow they went into the mountains to cut timber, and hundreds died, yet they still wanted to build a great monastery as well. Dong Wenyong told the man in charge, "Pressing the people into service out of season—they cannot bear it—why not slow down a little?" The chief administrator said, "How can the Vice Administrator resist the emperor's command?" Dong Wenyong said, "I do not dare resist the emperor's command—but to exhaust the people's strength and lose their hearts today—is that the emperor's intent!" The man lost heart, and the deadline was eased somewhat. In the twenty-third year the court was preparing to use troops in the eastern sea; exactions grew ever harsher, and the offices profited greatly by fraud. Dong Wenyong requested audience and argued in outline, "To exhaust the state's precious manpower for a remote, useless petty realm." He listed the points in full detail. When his words reached the throne, the campaign was dropped.

二十五年，拜御史中丞。文用曰：「中丞不當理細務，吾當先舉賢才。」乃舉胡祗遹、王惲、雷膺、荊幼紀、許楫、孔從道十餘人為按察使，徐琰、魏初為行臺中丞，當時以為極選。方是時，桑哥當國，恩寵方盛，自近戚貴人見之，皆屏息遜避，無敢誰何。文用以舊臣任中丞，獨不附之。桑哥令人風文用頌己功於帝前，文用不荅。桑哥又自謂文用曰：「百司皆具食於丞相府矣。」文用又不荅。會朔方軍興，糧糗粗備，而誅求愈急，文用謂桑哥曰：「民急矣。外難未解而內伐其根本，丞相宜思之。」於是遠邇盜賊蜂起，文用持外郡所上盜賊之目，謂桑哥曰：「百姓豈不欲生養安樂哉！急法暴斂使至此爾。御史臺所以救政事之不及，丞相當助之，不當抑之也。御史臺不得行，則民無所赴愬；民無所赴愬，而政日亂，將不止於臺事之不行也。」忤其意益深，乃摭拾臺事百端，文用日與辨論，不為屈。於是具奏桑哥姦狀，詔報文用，語密而外人不知也。桑哥日誣譖文用于帝曰：「在朝惟董文用戇傲不聽令，沮撓尚書省，請痛治其罪。」帝曰：「彼御史之職也，何罪之有！且董文用端謹，朕所素知，汝善視之。」遷大司農。時欲奪民田為屯田，文用固執不可。遷為翰林學士承旨。

In the twenty-fifth year he was appointed Vice Censor-in-Chief. Dong Wenyong said, "The vice censor-in-chief should not handle petty affairs—I should first recommend worthy talent." He then recommended Hu Zhiyuan, Wang Yun, Lei Ying, Jing Youji, Xu Ji, Kong Congdao, and more than ten others as surveillance commissioners, and Xu Yan and Wei Chu as regional censorate vice commissioners—regarded at the time as the finest appointments. At that time Sangge held the state and imperial favor was at its height—even close kinsmen and nobles held their breath and gave way on seeing him, daring not challenge him. Dong Wenyong, an old servant appointed vice censor-in-chief, alone would not attach himself to Sangge. Sangge had someone hint that Dong Wenyong should praise his achievements before the emperor; Dong Wenyong did not respond. Sangge also told Dong Wenyong himself, "Every office now takes its meals at the chancellor's mansion." Dong Wenyong again did not respond. When the ShuoFang campaign began, grain and fodder were roughly in place, yet exactions grew ever harsher; Dong Wenyong told Sangge, "The people are at the breaking point. External danger is not yet past, yet you are cutting at the roots within—Chancellor, you should think on this." Then bandits rose everywhere near and far; Dong Wenyong took the lists of bandits submitted by outer prefectures and said to Sangge, "Do the common people not wish to live in peace and plenty! Harsh laws and violent exactions have brought them to this. The Censorate exists to remedy what governance cannot reach—the Chancellor should help it, not suppress it. If the Censorate cannot act, the people have nowhere to bring grievances; with nowhere to bring grievances, government grows daily more chaotic—and it will not stop at the censorate's failure to act." This offended him all the more; Sangge dredged up a hundred pretexts from censorate affairs, and Dong Wenyong debated them day after day without yielding. He then fully memorialized Sangge's corrupt conduct; an edict replied to Dong Wenyong in secret words unknown to outsiders. Day after day Sangge slandered Dong Wenyong before the emperor: "Among those at court only Dong Wenyong is obstinate and arrogant, disobedient to orders, obstructing the Secretariat—please punish him severely." Kublai said, "That is the censor's duty—what crime is there! Moreover Dong Wenyong is upright and careful, as I have long known—treat him well." He was transferred to Grand Minister of Agriculture. At that time there was a plan to seize the people's fields for garrison colonies; Dong Wenyong firmly held that this could not be done. He was transferred to Academician Chancellor of the Hanlin Academy.

二十七年，隆福太后在東宮，以文用舊臣，欲使文用授皇孫經，具奏上，以帝命命之。文用每講說經旨，必附以朝廷故事，丁嚀譬喻，反復開悟，皇孫亦特加敬禮。

In the twenty-seventh year (1290), Empress Dowager Longfu, resident in the Eastern Palace, wished to have Dong Wenyong—the old servant she knew—instruct the imperial grandson in the classics. She submitted a full memorial, and the emperor ordered the appointment. Whenever Dong Wenyong lectured on the classics, he wove in precedents from court history, repeating his points with homely analogies until the lesson took hold. The imperial grandson treated him with marked respect.

三十一年，帝命文用以其諸子入見，文用曰：「臣蒙國厚恩，死無以報，臣之子，何能為！」命至再三，終不以見。是歲，世祖崩，成宗將即位上都，太后命文用從行。既即位，巡狩三不剌之地，文用曰：「先帝新棄天下，陛下巡狩，不以時還，無以慰安元元，宜趣還京師。且臣聞人君猶北辰然，居其所而衆星拱之，不在勤遠略也。」帝悟，即日可其奏。是行也，帝每召入帳中，問先朝故事，文用亦盛言先帝虛心納賢、開國經世之務，談說或至夜半。

In the thirty-first year (1294) the emperor ordered Dong Wenyong to present his sons. Dong Wenyong said, "Your subject has received the state's great favor and has no way to repay it even by dying—what could my sons possibly do!" The command came again and again, yet he never brought them to audience. That year Kublai died. As Chengzong was to be enthroned at Shangdu, the empress dowager ordered Dong Wenyong to accompany the party. After his enthronement Chengzong went hunting in Sanbula. Dong Wenyong said, "The late emperor has only just departed; if Your Majesty hunts abroad and does not return in good time, the people cannot be soothed. You should hurry back to the capital. Besides, I have heard that the ruler is like the North Star: dwelling in his place, the myriad stars wheel around him. His strength is not in pressing far afield." The emperor took his meaning and that same day approved the memorial. On that journey the emperor often summoned him into his tent to ask about precedents of the previous reign. Dong Wenyong spoke at length of Kublai's openness to talent and of the founding work of the dynasty, and their talk sometimes ran until midnight.

文用自先帝時，每侍燕，與蒙古大臣同列，裕宗嘗就榻上賜酒，使毋下拜跪飲，皆異數也。帝在東宮時，正旦受賀，於衆中見文用，召使前曰：「吾向見至尊，甚稱汝賢。」輒親取酒飲之。至是，眷賚益厚。是年，詔修先帝實錄，陞資德大夫、知制誥兼修國史。文用於祖宗世系功德、近戚將相家世勳績，皆記憶貫穿，史館有所考究質問，文用應之無遺失。

Since Kublai's day, whenever Dong Wenyong attended banquets he sat among the Mongol ministers as an equal. Prince Yu once offered wine from his couch and told him not to kneel and bow to drink—extraordinary favors all. When Chengzong was still in the Eastern Palace, at New Year's he saw Dong Wenyong in the crowd receiving congratulations and called him forward. "When I last saw His Majesty," he said, "he spoke highly of your worth." He personally poured wine and had him drink. By then imperial favor and gifts had grown even more generous. That year an edict ordered the compilation of Kublai's Veritable Record, and Dong Wenyong was promoted to Grand Master for Splendid Virtue with charge of drafting edicts and editing the National History. Dong Wenyong had thorough command of the imperial genealogy, the deeds of the forebears, and the honors of kinsmen and generals alike. When the historiographical office put questions to him, he answered without a single gap.

大德元年，上章請老，賜中統鈔萬貫以歸，官一子，鄉郡侍養。六月戊寅，以疾卒，年七十有四。子八人：士貞，士亨，士楷，士英，士昌，士恒，士廉，士方。贈銀青榮祿大夫、少保、趙國公，諡忠穆。

In the first year of Dade (1297) he memorialized for retirement. He was granted ten thousand strings of Zhongtong paper money to return home, one son received office, and he was to be maintained in his home district. On wuyin in the sixth month he died of illness, aged seventy-four. He had eight sons: Shizhen, Shiheng, Shikai, Shiying, Shichang, Shiheng, Shilian, and Shifang. He was posthumously granted the rank of Silver-Girdled Grand Master for Glorious Blessings, Junior Guardian, and Duke of Zhao, with the posthumous title Zhongmu ("Loyal and Solemn").

文直字彥正，俊之第四子也。剛毅莊栗，簡言笑，通經史法律。為藁城長官，佩金符。

Dong Wenzhi, courtesy name Yanzhèng, was Jun's fourth son. He was firm and solemn, sparing in speech and laughter, and versed in the classics, history, and law. He served as chief magistrate of Gaocheng and wore a gold tally of authority.

初，兄文炳及季弟文忠，去事世祖，次文用亦在朝，俱有仰於家，而食者餘百口，文直勤儉，始終不替。內則養生送死之合禮，外則中表賓問之中度，奉上接下，一敬一愛，藹乎其睦也。性好施而甚仁，里閈或貧不自立，每陰濟其急，不使之知恩所從來。微至僮病，必手予粥藥。或止之，曰：「不忍以其賤違吾愛心。」及棄官，浮沉里社，任真適意，親賓過從，尊酒相勞。家門日以烜赫，己獨恬然，不見諸辭色。以病卒，年五十有二。

His elder brother Wenbing and youngest brother Wenzhong had left to serve Kublai; Wenyong too was at court. All looked to the household for support, and more than a hundred mouths depended on it. Wenzhi was diligent and frugal throughout without slackening. Within the household he saw to life and death in proper ritual form; without, he received kin and guests with fitting measure. Toward superiors and inferiors alike he showed respect and affection—harmonious and warm. By nature he loved to give and was deeply humane. Neighbors too poor to stand on their own he secretly helped in their emergencies, never letting them know the source of the kindness. Even when a servant fell ill, he personally gave gruel and medicine. When someone tried to stop him, he said, "I cannot let their low station turn aside my care." After he left office he lived quietly in the village, following his own bent. Kin and guests visited, sharing wine and good cheer. As the family's glory grew daily, he alone remained tranquil, giving no sign of it in word or face. He died of illness, aged fifty-two.

文忠字彥誠，俊第八子也。歲壬子，入侍世祖潛邸。王鶚嘗言詩，因問文忠能之乎，文忠曰：「吾少讀書，惟知入則孝於親，出則忠於君而已。詩非所學也。」癸丑，從征南詔。己未，伐宋，與兄文炳、文用敗宋兵於陽羅堡，得蒙衝百艘，進圍鄂。

Dong Wenzhong, courtesy name Yancheng, was Jun's eighth son. In renzi (1252) he entered service in Kublai's princely household. Wang E once spoke on poetry and asked whether Wenzhong could compose. Wenzhong said, "In youth I read books and knew only this: at home be filial to one's parents, abroad be loyal to one's lord. Poetry is not what I studied." In guichou (1253) he followed the edict for the southern campaign. In jiwei (1259), on the Song campaign, he and his brothers Wenbing and Wenyong routed Song forces at Yangluo Fort, captured a hundred warships, and advanced to besiege Ezhou.

八年，侍講學士徒單公履欲奏行貢舉，知帝於釋氏重教而輕禪，乃言儒亦有之，科舉類教，道學類禪。帝怒，召姚樞、許衡與宰臣廷辨。文忠自外入，帝曰：「汝日誦四書，亦道學者。」文忠對曰：「陛下每言：士不治經講孔孟之道而為詩賦，何關修身，何益治國！由是海內之士，稍知從事實學。臣今所誦，皆孔孟之言，焉知所謂道學！而俗儒守亡國餘習，欲行其說，故以是上惑聖聽，恐非陛下教人修身治國之意也。」事遂止。

In the eighth year (1271) Lecturing Academician Tuan Gonglu wished to memorialize for civil examinations. Knowing Kublai in Buddhism valued teaching over Chan meditation, he argued that Confucianism had the same split: civil examinations were like teaching, Neo-Confucian philosophy like Chan. Kublai grew angry and summoned Yao Shu, Xu Heng, and the chief ministers for a court debate. Wenzhong came in from outside. Kublai said, "You recite the Four Books every day—you too are a Neo-Confucian." Wenzhong replied, "Your Majesty has often said that scholars who neglect the classics and the way of Confucius and Mencius to write poetry and rhapsodies neither cultivate the person nor help govern the realm. From that the scholars of the realm gradually turned to practical learning. What I recite now is the word of Confucius and Mencius—how should I know anything of Neo-Confucianism! Yet shallow scholars cling to the bad habits of a fallen dynasty and wish to impose their doctrine, thereby misleading Your Majesty. I fear that is not your intent in teaching self-cultivation and good government." The matter was dropped.

十一年，伐宋，民困供饋，文忠奏免常歲橫征，從之。帝嘗見宋降將，從容問宋所以亡者，皆曰：「賈似道當國，薄武人而重文儒，將士怨之，莫有鬪志。故大軍既至，爭解甲歸命也。」帝問文忠：「此言何如？」文忠因詰之曰：「似道薄汝矣，而君則貴汝以官，富汝以祿，未嘗薄汝也。今有怨於相，而移於君，不肯一戰，坐視國亡，如臣節何！然則似道薄汝者，豈非預知汝曹不足恃乎！」帝深善之。有旨徙大都獵戶於郢中，文忠奏止之。又請罷官鬻田器之稅，聽民自為。

In the eleventh year (1274), as the Song campaign strained the people's provisioning, Wenzhong memorialized to abolish the annual irregular levies, and Kublai agreed. Kublai once received surrendered Song generals and asked casually why Song had fallen. They all said, "Jia Sidao held power, slighted military men, and favored literati. Officers and soldiers resented him and had no will to fight. So when the Great Army arrived they were eager to lay down arms and submit." Kublai asked Wenzhong, "What do you make of this?" Wenzhong pressed them: "Sidao slighted you—but your emperor ennobled you with office and enriched you with stipend. He did not slight you. You resent the chancellor yet turn on your emperor, refuse to fight, and sit idle while the realm falls—what kind of loyalty is that! Perhaps Sidao slighted you because he already knew you could not be relied upon!" Kublai greatly approved. An edict ordered the relocation of Dadu hunting households to Ying. Wenzhong memorialized against it. He also asked to abolish the tax on farm implements sold by officials and let the people make their own.

時多盜，詔犯者皆殺無赦。在處繫囚滿獄。文忠言：「殺人取貨，與竊一錢者均死，慘黷莫甚，恐乖陛下好生之德。」敕革之。或告漢人毆傷國人，及太府監屬盧甲盜剪官布。帝怒，命殺以懲衆。文忠言：「今刑曹於囚罪當死者，已有服辭，猶必詳讞，是豈可因人一言，遽加之重典！宜付有司閱實，以俟後命。」乃遣文忠及近臣突滿分覈之，皆得其誣狀，遂詔原之。帝因責侍臣曰：「方朕怒時，卿曹皆不敢言。非董文忠開悟朕心，則殺二無辜之人，必取議中外矣。」因賜文忠金尊，曰：「用旌卿直。」裕宗亦語宮臣曰：「方天威之震，董文忠從容諫正，實人臣難能者。」太府監屬奉物詣文忠泣謝曰：「鄙人賴公復生。」文忠曰：「吾素非知子，所以相救於危急者，蓋為國平刑，豈望子見報哉！」却其物不受。

Theft was rampant, and an edict ordered that all offenders be executed without mercy. Jails everywhere were overflowing. Wenzhong said, "To punish murder for plunder and theft of a single cash alike with death is cruel beyond measure. I fear this violates Your Majesty's virtue of cherishing life." An edict revised the policy. Someone reported that a Han man had beaten a Mongol subject, and that Lu Jia, an officer of the Grand Provisioner's Office, had stolen and cut official cloth. Kublai was enraged and ordered them executed as a warning. Wenzhong said, "Even when a condemned prisoner has confessed, the penal offices must still examine the case carefully. How can we impose capital punishment on a single informer's word! The matter should go to the proper offices for verification, pending Your Majesty's further order." Kublai sent Wenzhong and the close attendant Tuman to investigate separately. Both cases proved to be false accusations, and an edict pardoned the accused. Kublai then rebuked his attendants: "When I was angry, none of you dared speak. Had not Dong Wenzhong opened my mind, two innocent men would have died and the court would have faced reproach at home and abroad." He granted Wenzhong a gold goblet, saying, "To honor your integrity." Prince Yu told palace officials, "When imperial wrath flared, Dong Wenzhong calmly corrected him—a feat few subjects could manage." The Grand Provisioner's officer brought gifts to Wenzhong and wept his thanks: "I owe my life to you, sir." Wenzhong said, "I did not know you before. I acted because the state must see justice done—not because I expected anything from you!" He refused the gifts.

自安童北伐，阿合馬獨當國柄，大立親黨，懼廉希憲復入為相，害其私計，奏希憲以右丞行省江陵。文忠言：「希憲，國家名臣。今宰相虛位，不可使久居外，以孤人望，宜早召還。」從之。十六年十月，奏曰：「陛下始以燕王為中書令、樞密使，纔一至中書。自冊為太子，累使明習軍國之事，然十有餘年，終守謙退，不肯視事者，非不奉明詔也，蓋朝廷處之未盡其道爾。夫事已奏決，而始啟太子，是使臣子而可否君父之命，故惟有唯默避遜而已。以臣所知，不若令有司先啟而後聞，其有未安者，則以詔敕斷之，庶幾理順而分不踰，太子必不敢辭其責矣。」帝即日召大臣，面諭其意，使行之。復語太子曰：「董八，崇立國本者，其勿忘之。」

After Antong marched north, Ahmad alone held power and built a private faction. Fearing Lian Xixian might return as chancellor and thwart his schemes, he memorialized to send Xixian to Jiangling as Right Vice Chancellor. Wenzhong said, "Xixian is one of the state's foremost ministers. The chancellorship is vacant; he should not be kept abroad and cut off from public expectation. Summon him back soon." Kublai agreed. In the tenth month of the sixteenth year (1279) he memorialized: "Your Majesty first made the Prince of Yan chancellor of the Secretariat and military commissioner, but he has attended the Secretariat only once. Since his investiture as heir you have repeatedly ordered him to learn state and military affairs. Yet for more than ten years he has remained modest and declined to take charge—not from disobedience, but because the court has not handled the matter properly. When matters are decided before they reach the heir, a subject would be judging his father's commands. No wonder he can only keep silent and hold back. In my view, let the offices report to him first and then inform Your Majesty. What remains unsettled let edict decide. Then roles will be clear and the heir will not dare shirk his duty." That same day Kublai summoned the chief ministers, explained his intent, and put the plan into practice. He told the heir, "Dong Ba upheld the foundation of the realm—do not forget him."

禮部尚書謝昌元請立門下省，封駁制敕，以絕中書風曉近習奏請之弊。帝銳意欲行之，詔廷臣雜議；且怒翰林學士承旨王磐曰：「如是有益之事，汝不入告，而使南方後至之臣言之，汝用學問何為！必今日開是省。」三日，廷臣奏以文忠為侍中，及其屬數十人。近臣乘便言曰：「陛下將別置省，此實其時。然得人則可以寬聖心，新民聽；今聞盜詐之臣與居其間，不可。」其言多指文忠。文忠忿辨曰：「上每稱臣不盜不詐，今汝顧臣而言，意實在臣。其顯言臣盜詐何事！」帝令言者出，文忠猶訴不止，且攻其害國之姦。帝曰：「朕自知之，彼不言汝也。」其人忌文忠，欲中害之，然以文忠清慎無過，乃奉鈔萬緡為壽，求交驩，文忠却之。文炳為中書左丞卒，太傅伯顏乃表文忠可相，帝使繼其官，文忠辭曰：「臣兄有平定南方之勞，可居是位。臣嘗給事居中，所宣何力，敢冒居重職乎！」

Minister of Rites Xie Changyuan proposed a Gate Department with power to seal and reject edicts, to end the habit of the Secretariat's favored intimates submitting petitions at dawn. Kublai was eager to put it into effect and ordered the court to debate the proposal; and angrily told Hanlin Academician Chancellor Wang Pan, "On so useful a matter you did not tell me first, but let a southern newcomer speak of it—what do you use your learning for! This department must be opened today." Three days later the court memorialized Wenzhong as Attendant-in-Ordinary, with several dozen subordinates. A close attendant seized the moment: "Your Majesty is about to set up a separate department—now is the time. But with the right men the emperor's mind can be eased and the people's trust won; yet I hear that thieving, deceitful men would sit among them—that will not do." His words were largely aimed at Wenzhong. Wenzhong angrily rebutted, "Your Majesty has often said I am neither thief nor fraud—yet you look at me as you speak. Your meaning is plain. Name plainly what I have stolen or defrauded!" Kublai had the accuser dismissed, but Wenzhong kept protesting and exposed the man's treachery against the state. Kublai said, "I know the truth—he did not mean you." The man hated Wenzhong and sought to ruin him, but finding Wenzhong clean and beyond reproach, sent ten thousand strings of notes as a birthday gift seeking reconciliation. Wenzhong refused. When Wenbing died as Left Vice Chancellor, Grand Preceptor Bayan recommended Wenzhong for chancellor. Kublai ordered him to succeed, but Wenzhong declined: "My brother earned the southern pacification. He deserved that rank. I merely served at court on errands—what merit had I? How dare I take so weighty a post!"

十八年，陞典瑞局為監、郎為卿，仍以文忠為之。授正議大夫，俄授資德大夫、僉書樞密院事，卿如故。車駕行幸，詔文忠毋扈從，留居大都，凡宮苑、城門、直舍、徼道、環衛、營屯、禁兵、太府、少府、軍器、尚乘諸監，皆領焉。兵馬司舊隸中書，併付文忠。時權臣累請奪還中書，不報。是冬十月二十有五日，雞鳴，將入朝，忽病仆，帝遣中使持藥投救不及，遂卒，甚悼惜之，賻錢數十萬。後制贈光祿大夫、司徒，封壽國公，諡忠貞。

In the eighteenth year (1281) the Bureau of Imperial Insignia was raised to a directorate and its clerks to directors; Wenzhong retained the post. He received the rank of Regular Grand Master and soon Grand Master for Splendid Virtue with concurrent appointment as secretary of the Bureau of Military Affairs, retaining the directorship. When the emperor traveled, an edict left Wenzhong in Dadu rather than on escort duty. He oversaw palace grounds, gates, lodgings, patrol routes, guard posts, garrisons, forbidden troops, and the directorates of provision, arms, and the imperial stud. The Horse and Chariot Office, formerly under the Secretariat, was also placed under Wenzhong. The powerful minister at court repeatedly petitioned to restore control of the Secretariat to him, but received no answer. That winter, on the twenty-fifth day of the tenth month, at cockcrow, as he was about to attend court he suddenly collapsed. The emperor sent palace physicians with medicine, but they could not reach him in time. He died. The emperor mourned him deeply and granted several hundred thousand in funeral funds. Later an edict posthumously granted him Grand Master of Splendid Virtue and Grand Preceptor, enfeoffed him as Duke of Shou State, and gave him the posthumous name Loyal and Upright.

嚴實子忠濟忠嗣

Yan Shi—his sons Zhongji and Zhongsi

嚴實字武叔，泰安長清人。略知書，志氣豪放，不治生產，喜交結施與，落魄里社間。屢以事繫獄，俠少輩為出死力，乃得脫去。

Yan Shi, whose courtesy name was Wushu, came from Changqing in Tai'an Prefecture. He had some learning and a bold, open temperament. He neglected his estate but loved making friends and giving freely, living in rough, unbuttoned fashion among the villages. He was jailed again and again on various charges, and only when young men of the sword rallied to him with their lives could he break free.

癸酉秋，太祖率兵自紫荊口入，分略山東、河北、河東而歸。金東平行臺調民為兵，以實為衆所服，命為百戶。甲戌春，泰安張汝楫據靈巖，遣別將攻長清，實破走之。以功授長清尉。戊寅，權長清令。宋取益都，乘勝而西，行臺檄實備芻糧為守禦計。實出督租，比還，而長清破，俄以兵復之。有譖于行臺者，謂實與宋有謀，行臺以兵圍之，實挈家避青崖。宋因以實為濟南治中，分兵四出，所至無不下，於是太行之東，皆受實節制。

In the autumn of guiyou (1213), Taizu led his army in through Zijing Pass, sent columns to overrun Shandong, Hebei, and Hedong, and then withdrew. The Jin Eastern Pacification Circuit conscripted the people for war. Shi was admired by the crowd and was made a centurion commander. In the spring of jiaxu (1214), Zhang Ruji of Tai'an held Lingyan and sent a deputy to attack Changqing; Shi routed him and drove him back. For this service he was appointed warden of Changqing. In wuyin (1218) he served as acting magistrate of Changqing. Song seized Yidu and pressed west on the momentum of victory. The circuit administration ordered Shi to gather fodder and grain for the defense. Shi went out to oversee tax collection. By the time he returned, Changqing had fallen, but he soon retook it by force. Someone slandered him to the circuit, claiming Shi was plotting with Song. The circuit sent troops to surround him, and Shi fled with his family to Qingya. Song then made Shi Adjunct Administrator of Jinan and sent troops in four directions; wherever they went, cities fell. Thereafter everything east of the Taihang range came under Shi's command.

庚辰三月，金河南軍攻彰德，守將單仲力不支，數求救。實請於主將張林，林逗遛不行，實獨以兵赴之，比至，而仲被擒。實知宋不足恃。七月，謁太師木華黎於軍門，挈所部彰德、大名、磁、洺、恩、博、滑、濬等州戶三十萬來歸，木華黎承制拜實金紫光祿大夫、行尚書省事。進攻曹、濮、單三州，皆下之。偏將李信，留鎮青崖，嘗有罪，懼誅，乘實之出，殺其家屬，降于宋。辛巳，實以兵復青崖，擒信誅之。進攻東平，金守將和立剛棄城遁，實入居之。

In the third month of gengchen (1220), the Jin Henan army attacked Zhangde. The defender Shan Zhong could not hold out and sent repeated pleas for help. Shi asked the commander in chief Zhang Lin for leave to go, but Lin procrastinated and would not move. Shi marched alone with his troops, and by the time he arrived, Zhong had already been taken. Shi knew the Song could not be relied upon. In the seventh month he called on Grand Preceptor Muqali at headquarters and brought the three hundred thousand households under his command from Zhangde, Daming, Ci, Ming, En, Bo, Hua, Jun, and neighboring prefectures to submit. Muqali, acting by imperial commission, made Shi Grand Master of the Gold-and-Purple Light and Acting Director of the Department of State Affairs. He advanced against the three prefectures of Cao, Pu, and Shan and took them all. The deputy general Li Xin was left to garrison Qingya. He had once offended and feared punishment; while Shi was away he killed Shi's family and surrendered to Song. In xinsi (1221) Shi retook Qingya by force, captured Li Xin, and put him to death. He advanced on Dongping. The Jin defender Heli Gang abandoned the city and fled, and Shi entered and made it his seat.

壬午，宋將彭義斌率師取京東州縣，實將晁海以青崖降，盡掠實家，義斌軍西下，郡縣多歸之。乙酉四月，遂圍東平。實潛約大將孛里海合兵攻之，兵久不至，城中食且盡，乃與義斌連和。義斌亦欲藉實取河朔，而後圖之，請以兄事實。時麾下衆尚數千，義斌聽其自領，而青崖所掠者則留不遣。七月，義斌下真定，道西山，與孛里海等軍相望，分實以帳下兵，陽助而陰伺之。實知勢迫，急赴孛里海軍與之合，遂與義斌戰，宋兵潰，擒義斌。不旬月，京東州縣復為實有。是冬，木華黎之弟帶孫取彰德；明年，取濮、東平；又明年，木華黎之子孛魯取益都：實皆有功焉。

In renwu (1222), the Song general Peng Yibin led troops to seize the prefectures and counties of eastern Jingdong. Shi's officer Chao Hai surrendered Qingya and plundered Shi's household clean. As Yibin's army marched west, many commanderies and counties went over to him. In the fourth month of yiyou (1225) they besieged Dongping. Shi secretly arranged with the great general Boerhai to join forces and attack, but the relief army was long in coming and food in the city was nearly exhausted, so he made peace with Yibin. Yibin also meant to use Shi to seize Heshuo and deal with him afterward; he asked to treat Shi as an elder brother. Shi still had several thousand men under his command; Yibin let him keep them, but withheld everything that had been plundered from Qingya and would not return it. In the seventh month Yibin took Zhending and marched by the Western Hills until his army and Boerhai's were within sight of each other. He detached Shi's personal troops, ostensibly to help but in secret to keep watch on him. Seeing the situation tighten, Shi rushed to Boerhai's army and joined him, then gave battle to Yibin. The Song force collapsed and Yibin was captured. Within a month the prefectures and counties of eastern Jingdong were Shi's again. That winter Muqali's younger brother Taisun took Zhangde; The next year he took Pu and Dongping; The year after that Muqali's son Bolu took Yidu—and Shi had a hand in all of these.

庚寅四月，朝太宗于牛心之幄殿，帝賜之坐，宴享終日，賜以虎符。數顧實謂侍臣曰：「嚴實，真福人也。」甲午，朝于和林，授東平路行軍萬戶，偏裨賜金符者八人。先是，實之所統，凡五十餘城，至是，惟德、兗、濟、單隸東平。丁酉九月，詔實毋事征伐。

In the fourth month of gengyin (1230) he had audience with Ögedei Khan at the canopied hall on Niu Mountain. The emperor gave him a seat, feasted him all day, and bestowed a tiger tally. Turning to Shi again and again, he told the attending ministers, "Yan Shi is truly a fortunate man." In jiawu (1234) he had audience at Karakorum and was appointed mobile corps commander of the Dongping Circuit; eight of his subordinate officers received gold tallies. Previously Shi had governed more than fifty cities; now only De, Yan, Ji, and Shan were placed under Dongping. In the ninth month of dingyou (1237) an edict relieved Shi of further campaigning.

初，彰德既下，又破水柵，帶孫怒其反覆，驅老幼數萬欲屠之。實曰：「此國家舊民，吾兵力不能及，為所脅從，果何罪耶！」帶孫從之。繼破濮州，復欲屠之。實言：「百姓未嘗敵我，豈可與執兵刃者同戮，不若留之，以供芻秣。」濮人免者又數萬。其後於曹、楚丘、定陶、上黨皆然。時兵由武關出襄、鄧，實在徐、邳間，以為河南破，屠戮必多，乃載金繒往贖之，且約束諸將，毋敢妄有殺掠。靈壁一縣，當誅者五萬人，實悉救之。會大饑，民北徙者多餓死。又法，藏匿逃者，保社皆坐。逃亡無所託，殭尸蔽野，實命作糜粥，盛置道傍，全活者衆。實部曲有逃歸益都者數十人，益都破，皆獲之，以為必殺，實置不問。王義深者，義斌之別將，聞義斌敗，將奔河南，實族屬在東平者，皆為所害。河南破，實獲義深妻子，厚周卹之，送還鄉里，終不以舊怨為嫌。其寬厚長者類若此。

After Zhangde fell they also broke the water palisade. Taisun, furious at the people's shifting loyalties, drove tens of thousands of old and young together intending to slaughter them. Shi said, "These are long-standing subjects of the realm. My troops could not reach them in time; they were forced to follow—what crime is that!" Taisun accepted his counsel. After Pu Prefecture was taken they again meant to slaughter the population. Shi said, "The common people never fought us—how can they be killed like armed soldiers? Better to keep them to supply fodder." Tens of thousands of people in Pu were spared. Thereafter he did the same at Cao, Chuqiu, Dingtao, and Shangdang. At that time the army marched out through Wuguan toward Xiang and Deng. Shi was between Xu and Pi and foresaw that when Henan fell the slaughter would be great. He sent gold and silks to ransom captives and ordered the generals not to kill or plunder at will. In Lingbi county alone, fifty thousand were marked for execution; Shi saved them all. A great famine followed, and many people fleeing north starved to death. The law also held mutual-responsibility groups liable for hiding fugitives. With nowhere to flee, corpses covered the fields. Shi ordered gruel prepared and set out in heaps by the roadsides, and many lives were saved. Several dozen men from Shi's retinue who had fled to Yidu were captured when Yidu fell. Everyone expected them to be executed, but Shi let the matter drop. Wang Yishen, a subordinate general of Peng Yibin, heard of Yibin's defeat and was about to flee to Henan. He had harmed all of Shi's kin who were at Dongping. When Henan fell Shi captured Yishen's wife and children, treated them generously, and sent them home—never letting old enmity stand in the way. His generous, elder-like conduct was of this kind throughout.

庚子卒，年五十九。遠近悲悼，野哭巷祭，旬月不已。中統二年，追封實為魯國公，諡武惠。子忠貞，金紫光祿大夫；忠濟，忠嗣，忠範，忠傑，忠裕，忠祐。

He died in gengzi (1240), aged fifty-nine. People near and far mourned him; weeping in the fields and offerings in the lanes went on for a month without end. In the second year of Zhongtong (1261) Shi was posthumously enfeoffed as Duke of Lu with the posthumous name Martial and Gracious. His son Zhongzhen, Grand Master of the Gold-and-Purple Light; Zhongji, Zhongsi, Zhongfan, Zhongjie, Zhongyu, and Zhongyou.

忠濟，一名忠翰，字紫芝，實之第二子也。儀觀雄偉，善騎射。辛丑，從其父入見太宗，命佩虎符，襲東平路行軍萬戶、管民長官，開府布政，一法其父。養老尊賢，治為諸道第一。領兵略地淮、漢，偏裨部曲，戮力用命。定宗、憲宗即位之始，皆加褒寵。

Zhongji, also called Zhonghan and courtesy name Zizhi, was Shi's second son. He had an imposing presence and excelled at riding and archery. In xinchou (1241) he followed his father to audience with Ögedei Khan, was ordered to wear the tiger tally, and succeeded as mobile corps commander of the Dongping Circuit and civilian administrator. He opened a headquarters and governed by his father's methods. He supported the aged and honored the worthy, and his governance ranked first among all circuits. Leading troops to overrun the Huai and Han regions, his deputies and retainers fought with all their strength. When Güyük and Möngke first took the throne, both heaped honors upon him.

忠濟初統千戶十有七，乙卯，朝命括新軍山東，益兵二萬有奇。忠濟弟忠嗣、忠範為萬戶，以次諸弟暨勳將之子為千戶，城戍宿州、蘄縣，而忠濟皆統之。己未，世祖南伐，詔率師由間道會鄂。親率勇士，梯衝登城。師還，忠濟選勇敢二千，別命千戶將之，甲仗精銳，所向無前。大臣有言其威權太盛者。中統二年，召還京師，命忠範代之。

At first Zhongji commanded seventeen chiliarchies. In yimao (1255) the court ordered a levy of new troops in Shandong, adding more than twenty thousand to his force. Zhongji's brothers Zhongsi and Zhongfan became commanders; his other brothers and the sons of meritorious generals became chiliarchs in turn. They garrisoned Suzhou and Qixian, all under Zhongji's overall command. In jiwei (1259) Kublai marched south against Song. An edict ordered Zhongji to lead his army by a hidden route to rendezvous at E. He personally led brave men up the walls with scaling ladders and battering rams. When the army returned Zhongji picked two thousand bold fighters and appointed chiliarchs to lead them separately. Their arms were fine and sharp, and wherever they went none could stand before them. Some ministers said his power had grown too great. In the second year of Zhongtong (1261) he was recalled to the capital and Zhongfan was ordered to replace him.

忠濟治東平日，借貸於人，代部民納逋賦，歲久愈多。及謝事，債家執文券來徵。帝聞之，悉命發內藏代償。東平廟學故隘陋，改卜高爽地于城東，教養諸生，後多顯者。幕僚如宋子貞、劉肅、李昶、徐世隆，俱為名臣。至元二十三年，特授資德大夫、中書左丞、行江浙省事，以老辭。二十九年，賜鈔萬五千緡、宅一區，召其子瑜入侍。三十年，卒。

While governing Dongping, Zhongji borrowed money to pay overdue taxes for the people under his command, and over the years the debt grew ever larger. When he left office, creditors came with written bonds to collect payment. When the emperor heard of it, he ordered the full amount paid from the imperial treasury. Dongping's temple school had been cramped and shabby. He chose high, open ground east of the city and moved it there, educating students—many later rose to prominence. Staff members such as Song Zizhen, Liu Su, Li Chang, and Xu Shilong all became celebrated ministers. In the twenty-third year of Zhiyuan (1286) he was specially appointed Grand Master for Supporting Virtue, Left Vice Director of the Secretariat, and Acting Director of Jiang-Zhe Affairs, but declined on account of age. In the twenty-ninth year (1292) he was granted fifteen thousand strings of paper money and a residence, and his son Yu was summoned to attend at court. In the thirtieth year (1293) he died.

忠濟統理方郡凡十一年，爵人命官，生殺予奪，皆自己出。及謝去大權，貴而能貧，安于義命，世以是多之。後諡莊孝。

Zhongji governed the region for eleven years in all. Ennoblements, appointments, and the power of life, death, reward, and punishment all issued from his own hand. After giving up great power he remained noble yet lived in poverty, content with his lot—and the world praised him for it. He was later given the posthumous name Solemn and Filial.

忠嗣，實之第三子也。少從張澄、商挺、李楨學，略知經史大義。辛亥，其兄忠濟授以東平人匠緫管，遙領單州防禦使事。乙卯，充東平路管軍萬戶。丁巳，從忠濟略地揚州，取邵伯埭，首立戰功。己未南征，從忠濟渡淮，分兵出挂車嶺，與宋兵相拒三晝夜，殺獲甚衆，始達蘄州。及渡江抵鄂，分部攻城九十餘日，戰甚力。師還，授金虎符。

Zhongsi was Shi's third son. In youth he studied with Zhang Cheng, Shang Ting, and Li Zhen and gained some grasp of the broad meaning of the classics and histories. In xinhai (1251) his elder brother Zhongji appointed him overall manager of Dongping's artisan households and gave him remote charge of the defense of Shan Prefecture. In yimao (1255) he became mobile corps commander of the Dongping Circuit. In dingsi (1257) he followed Zhongji in overrunning Yangzhou, took Shaobo Dam, and was first to distinguish himself in battle. On the southern expedition of jiwei (1259) he followed Zhongji across the Huai, sent a detachment out through Guache Ridge, and fought Song troops for three days and nights, killing and capturing many before reaching Qizhou. After crossing the Yangzi and reaching E, he was detached to besiege the city for more than ninety days and fought fiercely. When the army returned he was granted a gold tiger tally.

中統三年，李璮叛，宋兵攻蘄縣，勢張甚，徐州緫管李杲哥降于宋，齊魯山寨為宋兵所據。忠嗣從大帥按脫救蘄縣，復徐州，執李杲哥殺之。攻鄒之嶧山、滕之牙山，多所殺獲。按脫論功以聞，賜銀二百兩、幣五十端。四年，朝廷懲青齊之亂，居大藩者，子弟不得親政，於是罷官家居。至元十年，卒。

In the third year of Zhongtong (1262) Li Tan rebelled. Song troops attacked Qixian with great force. Xuzhou commander Liguo surrendered to Song, and the mountain strongholds of Qi and Lu fell to Song troops. Zhongsi followed the chief commander Antu to relieve Qixian, retook Xuzhou, captured Liguo, and executed him. Attacking Yishan in Zou and Yashan in Teng, he killed and captured many. Antu reported his merits to the court, and he was granted two hundred taels of silver and fifty bolts of silk. In the fourth year (1263) the court, reacting to the turmoil in Qing and Qi, ruled that holders of great fiefs could not let their sons govern directly. Zhongsi was therefore dismissed and lived at home. He died in the tenth year of Zhiyuan (1273).

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