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卷一百七十三 列傳第六十: 崔斌 崔彧 葉李 燕公楠 馬紹

Volume 173 Biographies 60: Cui Bin, Cui Yu, Ye Li, Yan Gongnan, Ma Shao

Chapter 173 of 元史 · History of Yuan
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1
西 西 輿 使
Cui Bin, whose courtesy name was Zhongwen, came from Mayi. He was quick-witted and resourceful, with a towering, imposing frame, skilled in horsemanship and archery, deeply versed in literature, and thoroughly capable in statecraft. Kublai Khan summoned him while still heir apparent; Bin answered to his satisfaction and was assigned to assist Bolinjigit in commanding scouting cavalry on garrison duty in Huainan. Bin was gifted with talent and strategic insight, and Bolinjigit held him in high esteem. The army was posted at Yangzhou's western ramparts, and Bin was sent with cavalry to scout the enemy. Seeing their ranks in disarray, he made a stealthy sortie, killing and capturing a great many. Soon afterward his father died; he inherited his father's gold tally and was appointed regional commander. In 1260 he was reassigned as deliberative officer on the Western Capital Pacification Commission. The emperor once told Antong to nominate a Han official who grasped the fundamentals of governance; Antong put forward Bin. When he was received in audience, he set forth the strengths and failings of current policy in terms that matched the emperor's own concerns. The emperor was then intent on reforming government, and Bin spoke blunt, honest counsel—calling out wrongdoing face to face, settling right and wrong on the spot, and holding nothing back. On one visit to Shangdu the emperor summoned Bin, who dismounted and walked beside the imperial procession. The emperor told him to remount and asked what the overarching principles of rule were and what ought to come first. Bin replied that the first priority was to appoint the right chief minister. The emperor said, "Then name someone you consider fit to serve as chief minister." Bin named Antong and Shi Tianze; the emperor fell silent for a long interval. Bin said, "Does Your Majesty perhaps doubt my nominees because I am unworthy, and because the court has not yet endorsed them? All those close at hand are present; I ask that Your Majesty take counsel from them and decide." The emperor agreed; still mounted, Bin called out, "By imperial command: is Antong fit to serve as chief minister—yes or no?" The crowd answered with a joyous cry of "Long live the emperor!" Delighted, the emperor appointed both men chief ministers at once. Bin was appointed director in the Left and Right Secretariat offices. Whenever councilors debated before the throne all day without reaching a decision, a few words from Bin would settle the matter. He always attended audience alongside the emperor's inner circle, yet counsel he offered was sometimes withheld even from those closest to the throne, and many grew jealous of him for it. When Ahmad set up the Bureau for Regulating State Revenue to control all finances and devoted himself wholly to squeezing the people, Bin said, "Better a thief in office than a minister who lives by plundering the realm!" He denounced Ahmad's corruption again and again before the emperor.
2
鹿西 調 便 貿 調
In 1267 he was sent out to serve as prefect of Dongping. The next year, as the main army marched south, it passed through Shouzhang. Some soldiers ripped up a villager's sleeping mat and dashed his infant to the ground, killing it; the man brought the case to Bin. Bin rode at once to the commander and said, "We have not yet reached the enemy, yet you are already killing our own people. The law has fixed penalties for this—you are answerable as well." The men were thrown into prison, and from that day no one dared molest the populace. Locusts ravaged the land that year, yet taxes were still levied as usual; Bin sent an urgent memorial to secure exemption, then won from court one hundred thousand strings of paper money to relieve famine among the people. In 1269 he was made associate administrator of the Bureau of Military Affairs. During the siege of Xiangyang and Fancheng he was assigned concurrent duty on the Henan Branch Secretariat. While commanders debated storming Mount Lumen, Bin said, "From Mount Xian west to Mount Wan and north to the Han, if we build walls and trenches to sever supply lines, Xiangyang can be brought to heel without a pitched battle." At the time corvée laborers from Cao and Pu were being conscripted for garrison farming around Nanyang. Bin proposed ending the Cao and Pu colonist levies and filling the garrisons from nearby districts with surplus troops; the people welcomed the change. He further proposed that the Ministry of Revenue issue salt certificates from the coastal salterns to the branch secretariat, recruit civilians to exchange grain for salt, and buy grain at premium prices to fill the granaries. Merchants and carriers converged from far and near, and supplies accumulated without strain. An imperial order called for twenty thousand troops to be levied from Henan's four circuits to reinforce the Xiangyang front. Bin sent an urgent memorial at once: "Henan has too few households for so many demands—the people truly cannot bear it; half the levy would be right." The court agreed. Once Xiangyang fell he was promoted to Grand Master for Splendid Happiness while retaining his concurrent post on the Branch Secretariat.
3
使 西 西
In 1273 Bayan was ordered to command the southern campaign; the Henan Branch Secretariat became a Pacification Commission, and Bin was promoted to Grand Master of the Palace with Golden Tally, given a gold tiger tally, and appointed Pacification Commissioner. All armies bound for Xiangyang and Zhengyang now passed through Henan; though the logistical burden was immense, nothing fell short. After Bayan crossed the Yangzi, Ariq Qaya was sent to secure Hunan with Bin as his second; Bin was appointed Vice Director of the Branch Secretariat. In the tenth month the army besieged Tanzhou, and Bin assaulted the iron palisade on the northwest. Ariq Qaya took an arrow wound and could not lead; Bin massed the troops beneath the palisade by night, and at dawn they had all scaled it, yet the attack failed. Bin said, "They are flushed with a minor victory and grown careless. Burn their corner towers, sever their relief routes, and ring the walls with three lines of trenches—the city will fall." The commanders assented. The army was sworn in, then advanced in silence up the iron palisade, each man carrying kindling; they scaled the tower and set it ablaze and threw up wooden palisades along the ramparts. At dawn scaling ladders went up amid drumbeats and war cries; Bin, shield braced before him, was the first over the wall. Ariq Qaya raised a cup in tribute and said, "This city is yours—the credit is yours alone." Bin told Ariq Qaya privately, "The defenders of Tanzhou have lost their nerve. If we hold our troops in check and offer terms, land and people alike will be ours; south of the great lakes, dozens of walled towns will submit at the stroke of a dispatch. If we press a slaughtering assault, not one soul will be left—what profit is there in taking an empty shell of a city?" The court agreed. The next day he sent envoys to explain the consequences of resistance and surrender, and the city rushed to submit. The commanders, furious at the prolonged resistance, all wanted to slaughter the population. Bin reminded them of the campaign's purpose; the generals replied, "Civilians should be spared as you advise, but enemy troops must die." Bin said, "Each man served his own lord—that merits honor, to encourage those still holding out, and slaughtering men who surrender brings ill fortune." The commanders relented. Word of the victory reached the court; the emperor commended him, promoted him to Grand Master for the Good of the State and Left Vice Director of the Branch Secretariat, and the people of Tan, grateful for his mercy, built him a living shrine. In 1274 he was ordered to pacify Guangxi, then recalled to govern Hunan. South of Tanzhou, in Anhua, Xiangxiang, and the country beyond Hengshan, bandits led by Zhou Long, Zhang Tang, and Zhang Hu rose everywhere; Bin encamped his forces on Mount Heng. When rebels surrendered, his colleagues urged mass executions to deter further revolt; Bin executed only the ringleaders by law and freed all who had followed under compulsion.
4
使 使 使
In 1278 he was recalled to court. Ahmad's grip on power was tightening daily, and no one at court dared confront him. Bin accompanied the emperor to the summer camp at Chaghan Nur. The emperor asked how the southern provinces were being governed. Bin replied that good government depended on appointing the right men, that most current appointees were unfit, and he then laid bare Ahmad's corruption in full. The emperor ordered Censor-in-Chief Xiang Wei and Vice Director Boluo to investigate, purge Ahmad's redundant staff, dismiss his kin and cronies, audit his crimes, and abolish transport commissioners empire-wide; the realm rejoiced. Just then Ministers Liu Mengyan and Xie Changyuan observed, "The Jianghuai Branch Secretariat is the weightiest post in the realm, yet not one of its ministers can read or write." Bin was accordingly appointed Left Vice Director of the Jianghuai Branch Secretariat. On arrival he swept away every policy that had plundered the state and preyed on the people, itemized the reforms, and memorialized the throne. Fearing Bin would bring him down, Ahmad scraped together petty charges, blocked his memorials from reaching the throne, framed him on false accusations, and had him killed. Crown Prince Zhenjin, at table in the Eastern Palace when he heard the news, dropped his chopsticks in grief and sent a messenger to halt the execution—but it was already too late. The empire mourned him as a man wrongfully slain. He was fifty-six. At the opening of the Zhida reign he was posthumously honored as Meritous Subject Who Promotes Loyalty and Preserves Integrity, Grand Preceptor, and Commissioner with credentials equal to the Three Excellencies, enfeoffed as Duke of Zheng, with the posthumous epithet Loyal and Resolute.
5
He left three sons: Liangzhi, Wei, and En. He had one grandson, Jing. All rose to high office.
6
○ Cui Yu
7
使
Cui Yu, courtesy name Wenqing, also known by his childhood name Baitiemuer, came from Hongzhou. Gifted and forceful in character, upright and outspoken, he won the emperor's deep regard. In 1279 he was ordered to accompany Yaqumu to the south to recruit men skilled in the arts and sciences. On his return the following year he reported first that Hududai'er Gensuo was seizing former Song property and harassing the populace—though an envoy, he had brought wife and children along and extorted saddles, horses, fodder, and grain wherever he passed. The emperor heard him out but never investigated the charges or reached a verdict.
8
使 滿 簿 使
In 1282 he was appointed Attendant Reader in the Hall of Worthies. Yu told the emperor, "While Ahmad held power, every colleague knew his crimes, yet not one dared challenge him; yet once he was executed they each claimed to have been blameless all along—a gross deception indeed. An order already went out to dismiss everyone Ahmad had appointed; I believe even his gate guards and runners should not remain. Vice Director Ali, for instance, has asked that his son Ashan inherit his father's post; if that were granted, the harm would be incalculable. Thanks to Your Majesty's discernment, you saw through his scheme and refused. I have already listed more than ten of his crimes; I ask that Ali be summoned to answer them at court." The emperor said, "I have already ordered the Secretariat to dismiss everyone Ahmad appointed, root out his entire faction, and spare nothing. When it is done, I shall have more to say to you." He also petitioned to have Hao Zhen's coffin opened and his corpse dismembered; the request was granted. Soon afterward he was ordered to audit the Bureau of Military Affairs archives, and was promoted from Minister of Justice to Censor-in-Chief. Yu said, "Censors exist to scrutinize the state's successes and failures in policy, the people's welfare, and officials' integrity—even princes, dukes, generals, and chancellors must answer to our scrutiny. Lately only investigating censors have been free to speak; I believe every censorial officer should offer counsel, to the state's benefit. If the Secretariat chooses surveillance officers, favoritism is inevitable; censors should be picked within the Censorate itself—sixteen Han officers at first, sixteen Mongols now—and they should tour the circuits in mixed pairs." The emperor adopted all of his recommendations. In 1283, again serving as Minister of Justice, he memorialized on eighteen points of policy: First, widen the channels of candid counsel, appoint upright men in rotation before the throne to speak for the court, and thus avoid the clog of faction and patronage. Second, while Ahmad held unchecked power the censors dared not call out his crimes; only after his fall did they queue up to denounce him—a spectacle of ridicule. Fresh appointments are needed; of the old censors, all but Mongols—whose cases await imperial judgment—should face prosecution. Third, the Bureau of Military Affairs decides officers' promotions and punishments unfairly, often at Ahmad's whispered direction. Choose men of standing as the bureau's chiefs, so that orders are clear and rewards and punishments just. Fourth, the Hanlin Academy too sang Ahmad's praises; search broadly among the most eminent scholars of north and south to restore dignity to those appointments. Fifth, though Hao Zhen and Geng Ren have been punished, many like them remain; equal crimes receive unequal penalties and public justice is denied—they should be removed one by one. Sixth, scions of great families are installed at once in high office without ever having studied—how can they govern? With teachers like Left Vice Director Xu Heng at the Imperial Academy, men of talent would emerge in abundance. Seventh, the Diarists of Attendance today record nothing but lists of memorials filed. Appoint reputable Mongols and sober, weighty Han scholars, rotate them on palace duty, and record every word and act of the emperor as a model for posterity. Eighth, with no codified law for the legal offices to enforce, wrongdoers have nothing to fear. Fix statutes and ordinances to serve as this dynasty's enduring law. Ninth, the bureaucracy is bloated; eliminating one post or merging one office is no lasting remedy. Consult broadly and set a permanent organizational framework. Tenth, officials lack salaries adequate to live honestly; punishing their corruption without raising their pay is unjust. Raise salaries where they exist and grant stipends where none exist, for officials at every level in every circuit. Fund this not from the treasury but through a modest levy on the people—once officials are properly paid they will not prey on the populace, and the people will accept a small increase in annual tax willingly. Eleventh, a hundred and fifty thousand inland households have fled south to escape taxes and corvée. Leaving home to wander is not human nature—heavy taxes and oppressive government have driven them to it. Issue a special edict recalling them to their homes, exempt their taxes and corvée for five years, cancel all arrears, and restore their property immediately. Judge civil officials at term's end by whether population in their districts rose or fell; refugees who remain in the south should bear corvée like local residents. Twelfth, every Han official Antong had advanced was driven out by Ahmad to idle posts or distant provinces—all should be restored to office. Thirteenth, property seized from Ahmad's faction belongs to the state, not to officials as spoils—it must not be squandered. It should fill the treasury and fund the annual budget. Fourteenth, Dadu is not Shangdu, a mere touring capital—it should not have a metropolitan garrison commission; Ahmad used that post to seat his private clique. Replace it with a metropolitan chief commandery. Fifteenth, the Secretariat has two right vice directors but no left vice director. Move one of the right vice directors to the vacant left post. Sixteenth, provincial branch secretariats need no chancellors or grand councillors—only vice directors and subordinates—so the center keeps its weight and the provinces cannot rival it. The argument that only exalted titles can keep the provinces in check is treacherous ministers' deceit. Seventeenth, Alahaiya commands both military and civil power; his sons, nephews, and in-laws hold key posts, and seven or eight of every ten local officials are his clients—his power rivals Ahmad's. Remove him from office and audit his accounts; even unproven associates should be transferred out of Huguang. Eighteenth, appointments are submitted in bulk lists with no way to judge merit. From now on every appointment of rank three or above must follow an imperial audience. The memorial was received; that day the emperor ordered the Secretariat to implement several items at once, and referred the rest to Censor-in-Chief Yeshi Temur for deliberation.
9
西 便
He also reported, "More than two hundred bandit bands have risen across the south, all because of the press-ganging of sailors and construction of warships—the people, driven to desperation, have rebelled. The invasion of Japan should be suspended for now. Military levies on Jiangxi's four provinces should match local capacity—do not demand goods the region cannot produce. Pay fair prices for requisitions, recruit sailors voluntarily, wait until the people recover and our forces are ready—in two or three years an eastern campaign will still be timely." The emperor dismissed this as impractical: "Your advice is like archery—the draw looks fine, but the shot goes wide." Yu added, "The Secretariat recently sent officials to survey Dadu's fields to curb powerful families' land-grabs; clarity requires verifying every military, civilian, and special household. Livestock counts were also surveyed—the intent was not to harass the people, but rumors are spreading and the planting season may be lost. Issue an edict of reassurance to the provinces and have the Secretariat execute it immediately." He also urged, "Counsel pours in—the Secretariat should deliberate collectively, implement what is sound, and plainly tell petitioners when their proposals are rejected." He also proposed ending the annual selection of maidens from the circuits. He also urged adopting the Song Wensiyuan's standard grain measure, which prevents concealment in official granaries. The emperor approved all of these as well.
10
使 祿調 使 ' ' 使 使 西簿 使 使
In 1284 Yu impeached Lu Shirong as unfit for chancellor; the emperor took offense and dismissed him. In 1286 he was made Grand Academician of the Hall of Worthies, Grand Master of the Palace with Golden Tally, and Associate Administrator of the Bureau of Military Affairs. He was soon sent out as Right Vice Director of the Gansu Branch Secretariat. He was recalled and appointed Right Vice Director of the Central Secretariat. With Grand Councillor Maisuding he memorialized, "In Sangge's four years in power, scarcely an official at court or in the provinces won appointment without a bribe. His brothers, old friends, and in-laws received key posts and rich territories, devoting themselves solely to deceiving the throne and plundering the people. Both secretariats should conduct rigorous reviews and purge everyone in his faction. Envoys and surveillance commissioners who took bribes should be prosecuted, their appointment patents revoked, and their names struck from the rolls." They further proposed abolishing the redundant offices Sangge had created, restoring the old rule that officials not serve in their home districts, and convening all bureaus to decide which posts to cut. Moreover, wealthy Dadu households sheltered by Sangge escaped corvée while only the poor bore it. Henceforth corvée should be shared equally by all; anyone who buys exemption through bribery as before should be prosecuted. Moreover, military and courier households faced unauthorized exactions each year and taxes multiplied until many fled their homes. Prosecute anyone who levies on the people or impresses military craftsmen without imperial order or proper documentation. Moreover, after Huduhu Nayan's household registration, no appanage should recruit subjects on its own; Taizong already forbade this, and Jiangnan's registers are fixed—follow Taizong's precedent." The emperor approved all of these proposals. In 1291, promoted from Right Vice Director of the Secretariat to Censor-in-Chief, Yu memorialized, "Grand Medical Superintendent Liu Yuechen, a former Song official skilled in governance, was recently assigned to deliberate on state affairs to universal approval. Appoint him a Hanlin Academician so he may counsel on court policy." He also reported, "The Branch Censorate states that Jianning Prefect Ma Mou, while hunting bandits, tortured innocent civilians to death in large numbers; he seized property, forced women, and accepted bribes totaling a hundred and fifty ingots of silver. Before trial concluded, a general amnesty intervened. We hold that Ma Mou killed without criminal cause and therefore falls outside the amnesty. Order the Branch Censorate to interrogate him and fix his sentence." He also recalled that Investigating Censor Zhou Zuo of the Branch Censorate had impeached Secretariat officials Mamudai, Jiaohuade, and Nasuding Mili for corruption; Nasuding Mili retaliated by framing Zhou Zuo and sending agents to the Secretariat to complain to Sangge. Sangge reported evasively to the throne, exiled Zhou Zuo to Qaidu's domain, and confiscated his family and property. Zhou Zuo reached Qara-qorum, found chaos there, and fled back to the capital. Sangge then sent him to Yunnan to audit finances, supposedly to redeem his offense. He has now returned from Yunnan; the provincial ministers and I reviewed his confession and found the offense trivial—his wife and children should be restored." The emperor approved all of these. In 1292 Yu joined Censor-in-Chief Yeshi Temur in memorializing, "People from every quarter crowd the capital gate, mostly petitioning for office. Titles, ranks, and salaries all have fixed standards. The Secretariat and Bureau of Military Affairs should set standards at once—appoint those who qualify, and plainly tell the rest why they must leave. Moreover, each proposal's merits should be examined promptly and answered clearly. Sound proposals should be implemented at once; those needing clarification should be referred back to the petitioner for detail; the rest should be dismissed." The emperor commended and adopted the proposal. He also memorialized that Nasuding Mili, Xindu, and Wang Juji, Sangge's allies, had overturned paper currency, appointments, salt monopoly, and wine tax without restraint; sent to Jiangnan to collect long-overdue taxes on impossible deadlines, their runners harrying the people until wives and daughters were sold, kin and neighbors ruined—Weiyang and Qiantang suffered worst, and more than five hundred innocent lives were lost. Recent interrogation by Chali brought full confessions and pleas for death; the people then understood that only Sangge and his faction had driven them to such misery, and all wished to tear them apart. We propose that since these three have confessed, the Secretariat and Censorate should sentence them according to public justice to satisfy the realm." The emperor agreed. He also reported that Xue Shegan of Hexi, serving as Pacification Commissioner with military command, was accused in thirty-six counts by his clerk before the Surveillance Commission, which ordered investigation. Xue Shegan then sent soldiers to seize and humiliate the investigator and abduct the accuser. We propose that the Branch Censorate send a censor to investigate Xue Shegan and suspend him from office immediately. He also reported that after Sangge's fall, envoys from court sometimes arrived without sealed edicts, claiming oral imperial commands to free criminals and seize property—none could tell genuine from false. Henceforth every envoy must carry a sealed edict, and every ministry, censorate, and bureau must issue stamped documents—to end such fraud." The emperor exclaimed, "Who would dare do such a thing?" They replied, "Yaraliyanu and Bayanchar have recently claimed oral orders to free criminals." The emperor approved every proposal. He also reported that Changsun, darughachi of Songzhou, had declined a finance post and asked to serve on the Surveillance Commission—order Mubalisha to report this to the throne. Once the order reached the Censorate appointing him, the censors were expected to implement it. Yet he had petitioned on his own initiative and had a prior offense on his record, so the case deserved separate handling. The emperor replied, "That is for you to decide—handle it with care." He also reported that Li Gan of Jiangnan had accused Ye Li of wrongdoing and that Ye Li had been summoned to the capital to answer the charge—but Ye Li was now dead, so the case need no longer be pursued. Li Gan was a scholar by background; I ask that he be given a teaching post to reward his candid remonstrance. He also proposed restoring the Surveillance Commission in the Ezhou circuit, which Yao Shumu had persuaded Sangge to abolish because it threatened his interests. Ezhou and the eight neighboring prefectures span a wide area and should again have a Surveillance Commission. The Branch Censorate had been stationed at Yangzhou, but since Yangzhou now falls under Nanjing, the branch should relocate to Jiankang; and the Huaidong Surveillance Commission, formerly at Huai'an, should move to Yangzhou. He also reminded the throne that bribery cases were long governed by fixed rules: reports in the capital went to the Censorate, and in the provinces to the Surveillance Commission. Under Sangge, bribery complaints were routed to ordinary ministries instead of the censorate, so cases bounced endlessly and rarely reached a conclusion. I propose restoring the old rule: complaints may be filed only with the central or branch censorate or a circuit Surveillance Commission, and no other office may take them. Supervising Censor Tadishi also accused the Jurchen Jiaohua of fabricating a claim that he had fed ten thousand of Jelme's troops with a thousand shi of grain during last year's eastern campaign, for which he had drawn four hundred ingots of paper money—the local Surveillance Commission should investigate, and the Branch Secretariat should recover the money and fix his penalty. The emperor approved every proposal.
11
使 使 西 西 西 禿 便
In the third month the Secretariat proposed making Cui Yu Right Vice Chancellor, but Kublai replied, "Cui Yu is no court rhetorician; he is fit only for the censor's role of speaking truth to power." In the intercalary sixth month he and Censor-in-Chief Yeshi Temür reported Geng Xi's accusation that Hejian Salt Transport officials had embezzled treasury funds. After joint inquiry by the secretariat and censorate, the debt stood at over twenty-two thousand ingots, of which fewer than nine thousand had been recovered and more than thirteen thousand were still outstanding. Transport Commissioner Zhang Yong had once offered his sister to Ahmad and won his patronage; and after Ahmad's death he placed an official maidservant in Sangge's household and regained favor. Through these connections Yong had kept his post at the transport office for years and personally embezzled three thousand one hundred ingots. We recommend that the censorate and secretariat send officials with the Surveillance Commission to recover twice the amount owed. He also charged that Yuelin Bo had found Jiangxi Surveillance official Shier Chidai and Hedong Surveillance official Hu'erchi guilty of sheltering bandits, seizing farmland, and gross corruption—and since Yuelin Bo was now in the capital, he should be interrogated immediately. He also reported that the Yangzhou Salt Transport Office had taken bribes and issued excess salt to merchants worth twenty-two thousand eight hundred ingots; once the money was recovered, the revenue should go to the secretariat and the bribes to the censorate, with penalties fixed accordingly to uproot the corruption. The emperor approved all of these proposals as well. He also accused Zhan Yu of Jiangxi of rising to a post in the Academy of Scholarly Worthies through occult arts. While Sangge was in power he had sent Zhan Yu to squeeze Jiangxi school funds; his greed and brutality devastated the schools. He recently told me that Sariman and Dashiman had claimed an imperial order that rebels were plotting in Jiangnan and had dispatched him post-haste to investigate; but the next day it emerged that Tusuhu and Xiangshan had fabricated the charge and sent him off under false pretenses. Zhan Yu is still in the capital and brazenly spinning such lies; he should be recalled at once and questioned. The emperor said, "He is a wicked man—and I never authorized sending him. Seize him and bring him here at once." In the thirtieth year Cui Yu warned that Dadu depended entirely on grain merchants, but recent official requisitioning of merchant ships for transport had driven sellers away and sent rice prices soaring. We recommended ending official ship requisitions. The emperor agreed.
12
退 殿 祿禿 使
Cui Yu had served the Censorate for many years with uncompromising integrity, which made him enemies. Supervising Censor Woluo Shila then impeached him, claiming among other things that restoring his brother's confiscated property from the previous reign was improper. Temür, furious at the spurious attack, had Woluo Shila flogged and expelled. In the eleventh month the Censorate reported that Dadu Circuit intendant Sha Di had embezzled public funds and taken bribes worth five thousand three hundred strings—a crime normally punished with one hundred seven strokes and permanent ban from office, though as a former minister's son he merited a lighter sentence. Temür wanted merely to suspend Sha Di from office, but Cui Yu and Censor-in-Chief Zhihe Helang refused to accept so lenient a penalty. Soon afterward the censors memorialized that Cui Yu had held the vice censor-in-chief post for nearly ten years and ought to be replaced. Cui Yu then resigned on grounds of illness. Temür told him, "Your request is reasonable, but try to stay a while longer for my sake." In the intercalary twelfth month, while also directing the Ceremonial Office, he and Director of Court Ceremonies Liu Wuyin reported that the annual New Year's rehearsal was held at Dawan'an Temple. Temür remarked, "Last year Orduqai arrived late because of snow, and the same thing is happening again. Anyone who failed to attend or breached protocol would be impeached jointly by the Palace Administration and the supervising censors." In the second year he was made Grand Master of Splendid Happiness and Grand Councillor, and soon he and Censor-in-Chief Tuochi reminded the throne of Kublai's decree that all registered scholars were to have their households restored. Years had passed, the elders were gone, and the young no longer studied; they urged a return to the old policy with Surveillance Commissions charged to encourage learning. Temür wholeheartedly agreed and ordered Cui Yu, Buqa, and Arghun Sali to consult with the Hanlin Academy and the Academy of Scholarly Worthies on special edict provisions to cultivate talent for future appointment. Cui Yu died that September. In the seventh month of the first year of Zhida he was posthumously honored as Honored Minister Who Sincerely Upholds Integrity, Grand Tutor, and Palace Minister of the First Rank, enfeoffed posthumously as Duke of Zheng, and given the temple name Zhongsu.
13
Biography: Ye Li
14
稿 便
Ye Li, courtesy name Taibai and also known as Shunyu, was from Hangzhou. Even as a youth he showed unusual promise. He studied under Shi Nanxue, a doctor of the Imperial Academy from Yiwu, and was admitted as a student at the capital academy. In the fifth year of the Song Jingding era, a comet appeared in the Willow constellation, and Emperor Lizong issued an edict blaming himself and calling for candid criticism. Kublai was then campaigning south with his army on the Yangtze, and the Song court sent Jia Sidao to command the defense. When Möngke died, Kublai withdrew, and the siege of Ezhou was broken off. Jia Sidao falsely claimed the victory as his own, returned to power, and grew ever more arrogant and domineering. He introduced the public-field note system, which deeply harmed the people, and no one at court or in the provinces dared speak against it. Ye Li joined eighty-three fellow students, including Kang Di, in submitting a memorial at the palace gate denouncing Jia Sidao. It opened: "Heaven's signs are out of order—the fault lies with those who hold power. Jia Sidao has usurped the seat of power, overturned law and order, and poisoned the people. Gods and men alike are enraged, and heaven itself has sent this warning." Jia Sidao was enraged when he learned Ye Li had written the memorial. He set his ally Liu Lianggui, prefect of Lin'an, to accuse Ye Li of improperly gilding his study plaque, fabricated a case, and had him exiled to Zhangzhou. Only after Jia Sidao's downfall was Ye Li finally released. When the Song dynasty fell, he withdrew to live in seclusion on Fuchun Mountain. The Jianghuai Branch Secretariat and the Pacification and Surveillance offices vied to recruit him and offered him professorships in Suzhou, Hangzhou, Changzhou, and other prefectures, but he refused them all.
15
西 使 殿 調
In the fourteenth year of Zhiyuan, Kublai sent Censor-in-Chief Xiangwei to tour Jiangnan with the Branch Censorate in search of hidden talent, and Ye Li's name was brought forward. Kublai had long known Ye Li's memorial against Jia Sidao, especially its closing line that the campaign two years before had succeeded only by heaven's luck—and each time he heard it he clapped his hands in admiration. When Ye Li's name reached him, Kublai was delighted and immediately appointed him Gentleman for Advancing Culture and Confucian Intendant of the Zhexi Circuit. On hearing the appointment, Ye Li tried to slip away, but the envoy delivered a letter from Chancellor Antong: "In the Song you were known for loyal and forthright counsel, and you have long been in the emperor's mind. You are now offered fifth-rank office. A true gentleman serves or withdraws as the times demand. Give yourself wholeheartedly to repaying this extraordinary honor." Ye Li then turned north, bowed twice, and said, "To serve and finally speak my mind—this has been my lifelong wish. How could I refuse the edict!" In the twenty-third year Attending Censor Cheng Wenhai was dispatched to search Jiangnan for talent. Kublai told him, "This mission must not return without Ye Li." When Ye Li arrived in the capital, Kublai ordered Academician Aruqan Sali of the Academy of Scholarly Worthies to host him at the academy. On another day Kublai received him in Pichiang Hall, commiserated over the long journey, and said, "I have long admired your memorial against Jia Sidao." He then asked where sound governance should begin. Ye Li traced the rise and fall of ancient rulers in detail. Kublai nodded in agreement, seated him at a banquet, and ordered him to attend court deliberations every five days. At the time all circuit Confucian offices had been abolished for standing vacant. Ye Li memorialized, "I have read the late emperor's edict: even in the founding years, when military affairs were overwhelming, he still sought out scholars. Now Your Majesty has unified the realm and turned from war to culture. How can we fail to cultivate talent and broaden the way of governance? Circuit Confucian intendants and prefectural professors are vital to civilizing the people and should not have been abolished. I ask that the Intendant Office be restored to supervise school officials, examine students, teach the principles of governance, and send the most promising to the Imperial Academy for future appointment. I also ask that corvée duties on scholarly households be abolished entirely." The emperor approved his proposal.
16
退 使 西便
At that time Nayan rebelled in the north, and Li Ting was sent to suppress him. But the commanders were mostly Mongols or their relatives; they would ride up, talk face to face, lay down their arms without fighting, and then drift away. The emperor was deeply troubled. Ye Li privately advised, "In war, surprise matters more than numbers. One defeats the enemy by strategy. When commanders are relatives, who will fight with all his strength? It wastes Your Majesty's supplies and burdens transport from every quarter. I would place Han infantry in the front ranks and line wagons behind them to block retreat, forcing a fight to the death. They have grown contemptuous of us and will be unprepared. A full assault will overwhelm them." The emperor passed Ye Li's plan to the commanders, and the army soon reported victory. From then on Kublai valued Ye Li all the more and summoned him after every court session to discuss state affairs. In the twenty-fourth year he was specially appointed Vice Censor-in-Chief with concurrent duty to deliberate Secretariat business. Ye Li firmly declined, saying, "I am only a guest in your service, yet you have honored me as an adviser. I would give you my best counsel. But the Censorate oversees affairs throughout the realm, and I am not equal to such a post. Moreover, I was once exiled to the malarial south and have long suffered from foot ailment, which has grown worse in recent years." The emperor smiled and said, "Your feet may find walking difficult, but surely your heart is still fit for service?" Ye Li declined again, and the emperor allowed it. He bowed and thanked the emperor, then said, "Though I no longer hold that office, the Censorate is the emperor's eyes and ears. Ordinary business may still be reported to the secretariat. But memorials from supervising censors and reports from the Southwest Branch Censorate that touch on military affairs or the people's welfare should be allowed to reach the throne directly, so the emperor's vision and hearing are broadened. They should not be throttled by legal formalities until they become empty paperwork. I ask that censorate officials be permitted to submit sealed memorials directly to the throne. That would be a great blessing." He added, "Censors exist to correct wrongdoing. If they do not hold themselves to account, what right have they to punish others? Those who are greedy and exceed all bounds should be handed to the judiciary under strengthened statutes, to punish fraud and deter abuse." An edict replied: "Granted." From then on censorate officials were permitted to submit sealed memorials directly to the throne.
17
殿 使 西
When the Ministry of Revenue was established, Ye Li was appointed Grand Master for Guidance and Left Vice Minister of Revenue, but he declined again, saying his qualifications did not yet warrant such rapid promotion. The emperor said, "The Shang rose through Yi Yin, and the Zhou through Taigong—did they wait on formal qualifications? The Ministry of Revenue holds the fate of the empire in its hands. I am asking this of you—please do not refuse." Ye Li was granted one large carriage and one small carriage, permitted to ride the smaller one into the inner palace, and given walking aids to help him up the steps of the audience hall. He helped establish the Zhiyuan paper currency system. He also petitioned to establish the Imperial Academy. One day, while accompanying the emperor to Liulin, he memorialized: "Good government cannot be imposed by decree alone, and worthy men cannot be promoted overnight. They must be trained in virtue and righteousness and steeped in the classics, so that they learn how the ancient sages governed. Only then will talent emerge in abundance and the blessings of rule reach the people below. The Tang, Yu, and Three Dynasties all maintained schools for the crown prince's education, and wise Han and Tang emperors often visited the Imperial College—not for display, but because education was essential to good rule." He then recommended Zhou Di and nine others for posts including Chancellor of the Academy, and submitted a detailed plan for the school's organization. The emperor approved every proposal. When the emperor proposed resettling Song imperial clansmen and prominent Jiangnan families in the north, Ye Li took a suitable moment to speak: "The Song have already submitted, and their people are content in their villages. If they suddenly hear of a mass relocation for no reason, fear and suspicion will spread. Should any troublemaker seize the opportunity to rebel, the state will suffer for it." The emperor saw the force of the argument, and the plan was abandoned. He was promoted to Right Vice Minister of Revenue and given the rank of Grand Master for Virtue. When famine struck Huai and Zhe and grain prices soared, Ye Li petitioned to halve Jianghuai land taxes and ship one hundred seventy thousand shi of grain from Huguang and Jiangxi to Zhenjiang to feed the hungry. When the emperor proposed invading Jiaozhi, Ye Li was summoned to counsel him. Ye Li said: "It is a distant frontier land of barbarians—conquest would bring no real gain. Once war begins, costs run into the tens of thousands. The mountain roads are steep and treacherous, and a deep thrust into enemy territory risks a single misstep that would destroy our authority among distant peoples rather than enhance it." The emperor dropped the plan.
18
綿
In the twenty-fifth year he was promoted to Grand Councillor, but Ye Li firmly declined and the emperor allowed it. He was granted a jade belt, accorded first-rank status, and given four thousand mu of land in Pingjiang. Meanwhile Sangge served as Chancellor of the Ministry of Revenue, monopolizing government and obsessed with profit to the people's ruin. The full account appears in his biography. Although Ye Li served alongside him, he was unable to check Sangge's abuses. When Sangge fell, his colleagues were implicated as well. In time Ye Li alone was granted leave to return south on grounds of illness. Li Gan, Director of Confucian Studies in Yangzhou, submitted a memorial: "Ye Li was once a branded convict whom the emperor singled out for high office—a once-in-a-millennium opportunity. Yet scarcely had he reached court when his first act was to recommend Sangge; he forbade close attendants from speaking on state affairs, and had Vice Directors Guo You and Yang Jukuan executed on trumped-up charges; he drove Vice Censor-in-Chief Liu Xuan to suicide, imprisoned Investigating Censor Chen Tianxiang, dismissed Censor-in-Chief Mendazhan and Attending Censor Cheng Wenhui, and had supervising censors beaten; he altered the paper currency system, cut student grain allowances, requisitioned military officers' salaries, and reduced soldiers' rations; he created branch agricultural offices and cotton monopoly commissions, raised taxes on salt, wine, and vinegar, and officials and commoners alike suffered for it. Worst of all, Yao Shumu ravaged Huguang, Shabuding ravaged Jianghuai, and Mie Guili ravaged Fujian. There were sweeping audits of finances and grain. The people seethed and bandits rose; Heaven showed its anger in earthquakes, and floods followed one after another. Only the emperor's wisdom has allowed the government to be reformed. Everyone knows the crime of Sangge's employment of petty men, but not the crime of Ye Li's recommendation of Sangge. Ye Li has lost his ministerial power but has not been punished, and people throughout the realm murmur against him. He should be executed to satisfy public outrage." When the memorial reached the throne, the emperor started and said, "Ye Li is honest, upright, and uncompromising—that is what I have always known of him. How could this be true?" An imperial order summoned Li Gan to the capital by post relay.
19
使
In the second month of the twenty-ninth year, as Ye Li was returning south and reached Linqing, the emperor sent an envoy to summon him and appoint him Grand Councillor to assist Chancellor Wanze in running the Secretariat. Ye Li submitted a memorial firmly declining. Before long he died, at the age of fifty-one. Ye Li had already died when Li Gan arrived. The emperor appointed Gan Instructor of the Jiangyin Circuit to honor his candor. The emperor once asked Zhao Mengfu of the Ministry of War whether Ye Li or Liu Mengyan was the better man. Mengfu replied, "Mengyan is superior." The emperor smiled and said, "Not so. Mengyan topped the examinations and became chief minister, yet he attached himself to Jia Sidao, harmed the people, and misled the state—a useless ornament in the Secretariat who never took a stand on anything. Ye Li came from the common scholar class and fiercely denounced Jia Sidao. In that respect he far surpassed Mengyan. His nature was uncompromising, and others found him hard to bear—but I alone valued him for it. The emperor had showered Ye Li with gifts over the years, yet Ye Li lived very modestly. He once warned his sons: "Our family has been scholars for generations, content with poverty and simplicity. We have won the emperor's trust only through loyalty and integrity. You must hold yourselves to integrity and caution. Do not add to my faults." Pointing to the gifts he had received, he said, "These must all be returned to the state in the end." When he died, his family memorialized and sent every gift back to the state. He had kept nothing for himself. In the eighth year of Zhizheng he was posthumously granted the ranks of Grand Master for Virtue, Right Vice Director of the Jiang-Zhe Branch Secretariat, and Senior Guardian of the State, enfeoffed posthumously as Duke of Nanyang Commandery, with the posthumous title Wen Jian.
20
Biography: Yan Gongnan
21
西使
Yan Gongnan, whose courtesy name was Guocai, came from Jianchang in Nankang Prefecture. He was the seventh-generation descendant of Su, Vice Minister of Rites under the Song. His mother, Lady Lei, dreamed that giant wings of five colors entered her bed curtains, and soon after Yan Gongnan was born. At ten he could already compose essays. When his father died, he mourned at the grave for three years. He failed the provincial examinations twice, but was later recruited by the regional commander and rose through five promotions to Vice Prefect of Ganzhou. In 1276, after Kublai had pacified Jiangnan, the regional commander provisionally appointed him Associate Prefect of Ganzhou. In 1277, for his service in pacifying Guangnan, he was transferred to Associate Administrator of the Jizhou Circuit. In the summer of 1285 he was summoned to Shangdu. His audience pleased Kublai, who granted him the Mongol name Saiyin Nangjiadai and ordered him to join the central government. He declined and asked for a provincial post instead. He was appointed Associate Director of the Jiang-Zhe Branch Secretariat, and soon transferred to the Jianghuai Branch. When the Ministry of Revenue was established, he became Associate Director of the Jianghuai Branch Ministry. Jianghuai had been a Song frontier, leaving much land uncultivated. Yan Gongnan proposed establishing garrison farms in the two Huai regions. His guidance was effective, and fields were brought under cultivation day by day. In 1288 he was appointed Grand Minister of Agriculture and placed in charge of the Encourage Agriculture and Colonization Commissions across eight circuits. Touring prefectures and counties, he promoted what benefited the people and exposed abuses. His achievements were widely recognized. He impeached Shabuding, the Jiangxi Colonization Commissioner, for greed and abuse of power, and had him removed from office.
22
便 簿
In 1290 he was appointed Vice Director of the Jianghuai Branch Secretariat. Although Sangge had fallen, corrupt policies remained and the people could not endure the burdens imposed on them. Yan Gongnan went to court, laid out the causes at length, and petitioned for reform to strengthen the foundations of the state. Kublai was pleased. When the emperor wished to replace senior ministers, he consulted Yan Gongnan, who recommended ten men: Bayan, Buqaimu, Chali, Qochoqai, Shi Bi, Xu Yan, Zhao Qi, Chen Tianxiang, and others. Asked who should serve as chief minister, he replied, "The man in whom the hopes of the realm rest is Antong." Asked who would be next, he said, "Wanze would serve." The next day Wanze was appointed chief minister, and Yan Gongnan and Buqaimu were appointed Grand Councillors, but both firmly declined. He was instead appointed Vice Director of the Jiang-Zhe Branch Secretariat and granted a bow, arrows, and ten guards for his journey. In 1293 he again became Grand Minister of Agriculture. He recovered nearly seventy thousand qing of concealed public and private land, which yielded annually more than one hundred fifty thousand shi of grain, two thousand six hundred strings of paper money, one thousand five hundred bolts of silk, and two thousand seven hundred jin of hemp and thread. In 1295 he was promoted to Right Vice Director of the Henan Branch Secretariat, where he reformed the salt monopoly to the people's benefit. He was summoned to court for an audience. Chengzong received him with great warmth as a veteran of his predecessor's reign and appointed him Right Vice Director of the Jiang-Zhe Branch Secretariat. The following year he was transferred to Right Vice Director of the Huguang Branch Secretariat. Tang Shen, an assistant commissioner of the Transport Bureau from Yuanzhou, had seized people's land by force; Liu Quan, Magistrate of Wuchang County, had murdered the chief clerk and falsely implicated the clerk's wife and children. Yan Gongnan saw that justice was done in both cases. In the fifth year of his reign Chengzong summoned him back to court, where he died. The emperor was deeply grieved when he heard the news. Funeral gifts and posthumous honors were increased, and court officials were specially ordered to escort his body home to the south.
23
Biography: Ma Shao
24
西
Ma Shao, whose courtesy name was Ziqing, came from Jinxiang in Jizhou. He studied under Zhang Bo of Shangdang. When Chancellor Antong attended Kublai, he proposed recruiting Confucian scholars to discuss the classics and history and broaden the emperor's learning. Grand Councillor Zhang Qiyuan nominated Ma Shao in response to the imperial summons, and he was appointed Chief Secretary of the Left and Right Offices. When he was sent out as Prefect of Shanzhou, the people erected a stone monument in his praise. In 1273 he was appointed Associate Commissioner of the Shandong East and West Circuit Surveillance Commission. When famine struck Yidu and Ninghai, Ma Shao distributed grain to relieve the suffering. In 1276 he was transferred to Associate Commissioner of the Hebei and Henan Circuit Surveillance Commission. Before he could take up the new post, Jianghuai had just been pacified and needed officials to govern it. He was transferred to Associate Administrator of the Hezhou Circuit, where the people found security under his rule.
25
In 1282 an edict partitioned Longxing as crown prince's fief. The crown prince selected Ma Shao as chief administrator, summoned him to the capital, and appointed him Minister of Justice. A clerk of the Ten Thousand Heaps Treasury stole four liang of velvet. The chief minister wanted the harshest penalty, but Ma Shao argued: "The goods were of little value. The punishment should be reduced." Ma Shao ordered him beaten with rods and released. When Li Yizhu of Hejian spread seditious rumors and was accused of plotting rebellion, Ma Shao was ordered to investigate. He spared nearly a hundred people who would otherwise have been condemned. In 1283 he was appointed Deliberator of Secretariat Affairs. In 1285 he was transferred to Minister of War. A year later he returned to the post of Minister of Justice. In 1287, when a separate Ministry of Revenue was established, he was promoted to Vice Director and granted five thousand strings of Zhongtong paper money. When new Zhiyuan paper notes were being issued, the former Commissioner of the Three Offices in Xinzhou, Du
26
便 使 殿 退 使
Fan argued that the Zhiyuan notes were inconvenient for both government and private use. Grand Councillor Sangge flew into a rage. "Who is Du Fan," he demanded, "to dare block my currency reform?" He wanted Fan punished with the harshest penalty. Ma Shao replied calmly, "The throne encourages people to speak out. When counsel is sound, it should be taken up; when it is not, the speaker should go unpunished. To punish him severely now would fly in the face of the emperor's own edict, would it not?" Fan was spared. Ma Shao was appointed Left Vice Director of the Ministry of Revenue. While imperial princes held frontier garrisons, some of their troops drew more than their allotted grain rations. When officials reported this, the emperor wanted a full inquiry and punishment. Ma Shao argued, "The frontier is at war. Punishing them now would only alienate officers and men. Let those who took too much repay it from future allotments—that should be enough." The emperor approved the proposal. When the imperial clansman Haidu rebelled, more than seven hundred thousand of his followers defected and were scattered across the Yun and Shuo region. Sangge proposed resettling them inland where they could be fed, but Ma Shao objected. Sangge raged, "Vice Director Ma coddles the Han—does he mean to let these people starve?" Ma Shao answered evenly, "The south is hot and humid. If northerners settle there, plague is likely to break out. If the fear is starvation, why not give each person sheep and horses enough to live on and send them home? Who among those still on Haidu's side would not gladly follow? When views differ, why should the chief minister take offense? Let the emperor decide." The proposal was reported to the throne as Ma Shao had urged. The emperor said, "Ma the scholar is right." Sangge assembled thirty circuit administrators, brought them before the emperor, and proposed ranking them by how quickly each had squeezed out revenue. The emperor replied, "Full revenue collection is impossible unless the people are driven to exhaustion. Yet my treasury and armies are hardly so desperate for it!" Ma Shao withdrew to the ministry, transcribed the emperor's words from memory, and had them entered in the official annals by the Grand Historian. When a salt-tax increase was proposed, Ma Shao alone fought to keep the Shandong rate from going up. When general tax hikes came up, Ma Shao said, "Unless extravagant spending is cut, doubling the levies would still not be enough." Both proposals were shelved. Alfalfa fields in the capital had been parceled out to residents, but the powerful seized the plots for themselves. One parcel was offered to Ma Shao; he alone refused it. Sangge wanted to petition the throne to grant him the land anyway. Ma Shao refused: "I hold office beyond my merits and already fear I cannot meet my obligations. How dare I grasp at unearned favor and invite disaster?" After Sangge's downfall, investigators traced everyone he had bribed and examined his ledgers. Ma Shao's name was nowhere among them. When Sangge was ruined, he said, "Had I listened to Vice Director Ma sooner, I would never have come to this ruin." The emperor said, "Vice Director Ma's loyalty and integrity deserve praise. Restore him to his former post." When the Ministry of Revenue was abolished, he became Left Vice Director of the Central Secretariat. After two years he pleaded illness and went home. In 1295 he was made Right Vice Director of the Central Secretariat and acting chief of the Jiang-Zhe branch secretariat. In 1299 he was transferred to Henan Province. He died the following year. He left several hundred poems and prose pieces.
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