1
Zhangsun Jian; Zhangsun Shaoyuan; Zhangsun Cheng (younger brother); Zhangsun Si (nephew); Hu Sizheng
2
Zhangsun Jian came from Luoyang in Henan. He was originally named Qingming. His ancestors were a cadet line of Wei bearing the surname Tuoba. When Emperor Xiaowen moved the capital to Luoyang, the family took the surname Zhangsun. His fifth-generation ancestor Song had been Grand Commandant of Wei and Prince of Beiping.
3
From boyhood Zhangsun Jian was upright and principled, with a imposing frame and a grave, commanding presence; even in private he sat all day with unbroken dignity. He made no casual friendships; if a man was not of his mind, no matter how highborn the visitor at his gate, he would not receive him. In the Xiaochang era he entered service as Supernumerary Attendant Cavalier in Ordinary and followed Erzhu Tianguang in the conquest of Longyou. When Grand Progenitor Yuwen Tai took up post at Xia Province, he appointed Zhangsun Jian recorder-in-chief and valued him deeply. After Heba Yue was murdered, Grand Progenitor Yuwen Tai marched to Pingliang; Zhangsun Jian took part in every major plan and policy. After Houmochen Yue was defeated, Grand Progenitor Yuwen Tai left Zhangsun Jian behind as chief clerk of Qin Province. Western Xia Province had not yet submitted, but Eastern Wei had sent Xu He as its governor; Zhangsun Jian won him over with good faith, and Xu He brought the whole province over. Grand Progenitor Yuwen Tai then made Zhangsun Jian governor of Western Xia Province with overall authority over the three Xia provinces.
4
時荊襄初附，太祖表儉功績尤美，宜委東南之任，授荊州刺史、東南道行臺僕射。 所部鄭縣令泉璨為民所訟，推治獲實。 儉卽大集僚屬而謂之曰：「此由刺史教誨不明，信不被物，是我之愆，非泉璨之罪。」 遂於廳事前，肉袒自罰，舍璨不問。 於是屬城肅勵，莫敢犯法。 魏文帝璽書勞之。 太祖又與儉書曰：「近行路傳公以部內縣令有罪，遂自杖三十，用肅羣下。 吾昔聞『王臣謇謇，匪躬之故』，蓋謂憂公忘私，知無不為而已。 未有如公刻身罰己以訓羣僚者也。 聞之嘉歎。」 荊蠻舊俗，少不敬長。 儉殷勤勸導，風俗大革。 務廣耕桑，兼習武事，故得邊境無虞，民安其業。 吏民表請為儉構清德樓，樹碑刻頌，朝議許焉。 在州遂歷 （二） ［七］載。
When Jing and Xiang had just submitted, Grand Progenitor Yuwen Tai memorialized that Zhangsun Jian's record was outstanding and that the southeast should be entrusted to him; he was made governor of Jing Province and vice director of the Southeastern Circuit Executive Office. Quan Can, magistrate of Zheng County in his jurisdiction, was denounced by the people, and an inquiry proved the charges true. Zhangsun Jian then assembled his entire staff and said: "This happened because I failed to teach and lead clearly enough for trust to reach the people. The fault is mine, not Quan Can's." He then bared his back in the courtyard before the hall, flogged himself, and dismissed the case against Quan Can. From that day the subordinate districts stood in awe, and no one dared break the law. Emperor Wen of Wei sent him an imperial letter of commendation. Grand Progenitor Yuwen Tai also wrote to Zhangsun Jian: "Travelers lately tell me that when a county magistrate under you was found guilty, you had yourself beaten thirty strokes to awe your staff. I have heard the saying that a king's minister must speak plainly and forget himself for the realm's sake—that is, to care for the public good and hold nothing back. Yet that is only the common measure. Never have I known a man who punished his own body to teach his colleagues, as you have done. When I heard of it, I marveled and rejoiced." Among the Jing tribes the old custom held that the young owed little respect to their elders. Zhangsun Jian worked patiently to guide them, and local customs changed profoundly. He pushed farming and mulberry cultivation while keeping the people trained for war, so the frontier stayed quiet and the people could live by their trades in peace. Officials and commoners petitioned to build a Pure Virtue Tower for Zhangsun Jian and to raise a stele in his praise; the court approved. He served in the province for [variant: two] seven years.
5
He was summoned to court and appointed minister of the Grand Executive Office, while also serving as major of the grand chancellor's office. Once, while sitting with the other lords in attendance on Grand Progenitor Yuwen Tai, he withdrew with them afterward; Grand Progenitor Yuwen Tai told his attendants: "That man is refined and easy in manner. Whenever I talk with him I find myself sitting up straight in awe, afraid I may say something unworthy." Another day Grand Progenitor Yuwen Tai said to Zhangsun Jian: "Name and conduct ought to match. You, Minister, aspire to live plainly and without excess; you should take the name Jian to show that refinement."
6
He was again appointed vice director of the executive office and governor of Jing Province. At that time the Liang Prince of Yueyang, Xiao Cha, had submitted to the court and sent his first embassy through Jing Province. In the reception hall Zhangsun Jian drew up a military guard, put on full martial dress, and received the envoys with formal host-and-guest ceremony. Zhangsun Jian was towering in build and spoke in a deep, bell-like voice; he addressed them at length in Xianbei and had interpreters relay his questions. The envoys were so awed that they did not dare raise their eyes. That evening he changed into civilian skirt-robe and gauze cap and entertained the guests at a separate banquet. He then spoke of the Liang realm's ruin and of the court's wish to welcome and restore them; his remarks were eloquent and compelling. The envoys were deeply pleased. When they departed they said, "He is beyond our power to measure."
7
及梁元帝嗣位於江陵，外敦鄰睦，內懷異計。 儉密啟太祖，陳攻取之謀。 於是徵儉入朝，問其經略。 儉對曰：「今江陵旣在江北，去我不遠。 湘東卽位，已涉三年。 觀其形勢，不欲東下。 骨肉相殘，民厭其毒。 荊州軍資器械，儲積已久，若大軍西討，必無匱乏之慮。 且兼弱攻昧，武之善經。 國家旣有蜀土，若更平江漢，撫而安之，收其貢賦，以供軍國，天下不足定也。」 太祖深然之，乃謂儉曰：「如公之言，吾取之晚矣。」 令儉還州，密為之備。 尋令柱國、燕公于謹總戎衆伐江陵。 平，以儉元謀，賞奴婢三百口。 太祖與儉書曰：「本圖江陵，由公畫計，今果如所言。 智者見未萌，何其妙也。 但吳民離散，事藉招懷，南服重鎮，非公莫可。」 遂令儉鎮江陵。 進爵昌寧公，遷大將軍，移鎮荊州，總管五十二州。
When Liang Emperor Yuan took the throne at Jiangling, he cultivated neighborly courtesy abroad while secretly nursing other designs. Zhangsun Jian secretly reported to Grand Progenitor Yuwen Tai and laid out a plan to seize Jiangling. Grand Progenitor Yuwen Tai then summoned Zhangsun Jian to court and asked for his strategy. Zhangsun Jian answered: "Jiangling now lies north of the Yangtze, close at hand. Emperor Yuan of Xiangdong has already reigned three years. Judging by the situation, he has no wish to march east. His own kin have torn one another apart, and the people are sick of the suffering. Jing Province has long hoarded arms and supplies; if a great army moves west, we need not fear want. Besides, to join against the weak and strike the blind is the finest rule of war. The realm already holds Shu; if we also pacify the Jiang-Han region, soothe and settle it, and take its tribute and taxes for army and state, the rest of the empire will not be hard to secure." Grand Progenitor Yuwen Tai strongly agreed and said to Zhangsun Jian: "As you say, I have moved too late." He ordered Zhangsun Jian back to his province to make secret preparations. Soon afterward he put Pillar of State Yu Jin, Duke of Yan, in command of the army for the assault on Jiangling. After the city fell, Zhangsun Jian was rewarded with three hundred slaves as the original architect of the campaign. Grand Progenitor Yuwen Tai wrote to Zhangsun Jian: "The plan for Jiangling was yours from the start, and events have proved you right. The wise foresee what has not yet budded—how subtle your insight was. But the people of Wu are scattered and must be won back by kindness; no one but you can hold this great southern stronghold." He then put Zhangsun Jian in charge of Jiangling. Zhangsun Jian was raised to Duke of Changning and grand general, moved his headquarters to Jing Province, and took overall command of fifty-two provinces.
8
Once, when Zhangsun Jian went to the palace to report on affairs, a heavy snow was falling; he stood in the snow from morning until night waiting for an answer, never once showing weariness. His devotion to duty was always of this order. In the third year he returned to the capital because of illness. He served as overall commander of Xia Province, then died; in his final memorial to Emperor Shizong he asked to be buried beside Grand Progenitor Yuwen Tai's tomb and to return to the state the house he had received as an official grant. The emperor granted both requests. He was posthumously enfeoffed as Duke of Kuai. Seven hundred men of Jing, led by honorary companion Zhao Chao, moved by Zhangsun Jian's lingering kindness, petitioned at court to build him a temple and stele; the emperor approved. An edict said: "Long ago Shu Ao refused rich land and Xiao He settled in a poor, remote place; measured against those ancients, Zhangsun Jian need not blush before the sages of old. Such virtue deserves lasting remembrance. Yet the officials failed to understand the larger meaning and had hastily turned his house over to others. Let his wife and children have it back." His son was Long.
9
Zhangsun Shaoyuan, styled Shi, came from Luoyang in Henan. As a boy he was called Ren. His father Zhi had been Grand Preceptor of Wei, recorder of the Masters of Writing, and Prince of Shangdang.
10
Zhangsun Shaoyuan was open-hearted and magnanimous; he looked so grave and dignified that even his peers dared not treat him lightly. He loved the classics and was unusually quick of mind. At the time his father Zhi was governor of Shouchun; Zhangsun Shaoyuan was only thirteen. Zhi's registrar Wang Shuo heard that Zhangsun Shaoyuan had a prodigious memory and did not believe it. He therefore told Zhi: "I hear that the heir's brilliance is inborn—that what he sees once he can recite at once. Such a gift is all but unheard of in any age, and I would like to put it to the test." Zhi then had Zhangsun Shaoyuan tested. He read several pages of the Monthly Ordinances once through and recited them fluently from memory. From that day Wang Shuo was fully convinced.
11
Early in the reign of Emperor Xiaowu of Wei he rose to chief clerk of the right under the Minister of Public Works. When Gao Huan took up arms and the emperor moved west, Zhangsun Shaoyuan went with his father to join him. He was promoted again to palace master of writing and recorder of the Masters of Writing. Grand Progenitor Yuwen Tai often told the other ministers: "Wherever Lord Zhangsun is placed in office, men serve without looking back over their shoulders. The Xiao and Kou of Han were nothing beside him. And his bearing is so upright and commanding that he is a model for our own age." When the Six Offices were established, Zhangsun Shaoyuan was made grand master of music. When Emperor Xiaomin came to the throne, he was enfeoffed as Duke of Shangdang.
12
初，紹遠為太常，廣召工人，創造樂器，土木絲竹，各得其宜。 為黃鐘不調，紹遠每以為意。 嘗因退朝，經韓使君佛寺前過，浮圖三層之上，有鳴鐸焉。 忽聞其音，雅合宮調，取而配奏，方始克諧。 紹遠乃啟世宗行之。 紹遠所奏樂，以八為數。 故梁黃門侍郎裴正上書，以為昔者大舜欲聞七始，下洎周武，爰創七音。 持林鐘作黃鐘，以為正調之首。 詔與紹遠詳議往復，於是遂定以八為數焉。 授小司空。 高祖讀史書，見武王克殷而作七始，又欲廢八而懸七，幷除黃鐘之正宮，用林鐘為調首。 紹遠奏云：「天子懸八，肇自先民，百王共軌，萬世不易。 下逮周武，甫修七始之音。 詳諸經義，又無廢八之典。 且黃鐘為君，天子正位，今欲廢之，未見其可。」 後高祖竟 （廢） 行七音。 屬紹遠遘疾，未獲面陳，慮有司遽損樂器，乃書與樂部齊樹之。
While serving as grand master of ceremonial, Zhangsun Shaoyuan gathered craftsmen from far and wide to make new instruments, fitting wood, clay, silk, and bamboo each to its proper use. The yellow bell pitch would not settle, and the problem weighed on him constantly. Once, leaving court, he passed Han Shijun's Buddhist temple and noticed a sounding bell on the three-tiered pagoda. When he heard it strike, the tone matched the gong pitch perfectly; he took the bell, matched it in performance, and at last achieved harmony. Zhangsun Shaoyuan then memorialized Emperor Shizong to adopt it. The music Zhangsun Shaoyuan submitted took eight as its governing number. Pei Zheng, former Attendant Secretary of the Yellow Gate of Liang, submitted a memorial arguing that in antiquity Great Shun had wished to hear the Seven Beginnings and that, down to King Wu of Zhou, the seven tones were first established. He treated Forest Bell as Yellow Bell and made it the head of the standard pitch sequence. An edict ordered Zhangsun Shaoyuan to debate the matter in detail; the court then fixed the number at eight. Zhangsun Shaoyuan was appointed Lesser Minister of Works. Emperor Gaozu read the histories and, seeing that King Wu had created the Seven Beginnings after conquering Yin, again wished to abolish the eight-tone system and suspend seven sets, remove Yellow Bell as the principal palace pitch, and use Forest Bell as the leading tone. Zhangsun Shaoyuan memorialized: "The Son of Heaven suspends eight sets of bells and chimes—a practice reaching back to antiquity, shared by a hundred kings and unchanging through the ages. Down to King Wu of Zhou, he merely restored the music of the Seven Beginnings. A careful reading of the canonical texts offers no precedent for abolishing the eight-tone system. Moreover Yellow Bell is the sovereign pitch and the Son of Heaven's proper station; to abolish it now seems impossible to justify." In the end Emperor Gaozu (abolished) [deleted character] implemented the seven-tone system. Just then Zhangsun Shaoyuan fell ill. Unable to present his views in person and fearing that the relevant offices would hastily cut back the instruments, he wrote to Qi Shuzhi of the Music Bureau.
13
後疾甚，乃上遺表又陳之而卒。 帝省表涕零，深痛惜之。
His illness then worsened sharply; he submitted a final memorial restating his views and died. When the emperor read the memorial he wept; he deeply mourned the loss and grieved for him.
14
Cheng, styled Shiliang. At ten he so impressed Minister over the Masses Li Yanzhi that Li gave him his daughter in marriage. At fourteen he joined campaigns, showed strategic talent, and outstripped the other generals in courage. When grown he was tall and imposing, with a warm and refined bearing. At the beginning of Emperor Xiaowu of Wei's reign he was made General Pacifying the East and Governor of Wei Province.
15
Emperor Wen of Wei once feasted with Grand Progenitor Yuwen Tai and the assembled lords and said at ease: "The Classic of Filial Piety in one scroll is the root of human conduct. Gentlemen, each of you should quote a key passage." Cheng answered at once: "Be untiring from morning to night in serving one man." Someone else at the table said: "Rescue him from his evil." After they left the pavilion, Grand Progenitor Yuwen Tai greatly praised Cheng for hitting the mark and rebuked the man who had answered next.
16
Later he followed Grand Progenitor Yuwen Tai to relieve Yubi and fought again at Mount Mang; he was raised to Grand General of Fast Cavalry and Opening Office. When Emperor Xiaomin succeeded, he was made Grand General, enfeoffed as Duke of Yimen, and appointed overall commander of Yubi. After his death, from the start of mourning through the burial, Emperor Ming visited three times. Palace Sacrifice Grand Master Yuwen Rong remonstrated: "When a sovereign attends a minister's mourning, ritual sets clear limits. For the imperial carriage to descend so often may violate ritual precedent." Emperor Ming did not listen.
17
Cheng lived plainly and frugally; his household had no surplus wealth. Grand Progenitor Yuwen Tai once told him: "Between us I hold back nothing. If you need anything, say so at once." Cheng said: "From head to foot I owe everything to your grace. Even now I truly need nothing." He received guests with grace and attended them tirelessly. Though he did not drink himself, he loved watching others in the flush of wine. Fearing guests would ask to leave, he always had the central kitchen send out special dishes to keep them at table.
18
Si, styled Ruohan, was quick and eloquent by nature, with a strong memory and wide learning; he greatly valued guests and fellowship and was especially skilled at conversation. He followed Emperor Xiaowu of Wei on the westward migration. At the beginning of Tianhe, after successive promotions he became Grand General of Fast Cavalry and Opening Office, then was transferred as Governor of Jiang Province.
19
Hu Sizheng, styled Shiliang, came from Luoyang in Henan. His father Chun was Grand Tutor and Director of the Masters of Writing. From boyhood Hu Sizheng was clever and keen; at five he could recite the Classic of Filial Piety and the Book of Changes, and those who knew him marveled at it. When grown he read widely, mastered the Three Ritual Classics above all, and also understood pitch and rhythm. Deeply filial by nature, in mourning his father he ate only one yi of rice morning and evening. By his father's merit he rose repeatedly to Minister of Ceremonies.
20
After Emperor Xiaowu of Wei's westward migration court music had fallen into ruin; Hu Sizheng gathered what survived, checked it against canonical precedent, and by creating anew and reforming the old at last restored it. Music also includes the chunyu, an instrument long extinct in recent times; when one was brought from Shu, no one recognized it. Hu Sizheng saw it and said: "This is a chunyu." No one believed him. Hu Sizheng then followed Gan Bao's commentary on the Rites of Zhou and struck it with a bamboo tube; the sound rang out powerfully, and the onlookers marveled. He then incorporated it into the court music. When the Six Offices were established he was made Grand Master Director of Music and advanced to Grand General of Fast Cavalry and Opening Office.
21
Later Emperor Gaozu, finding Hu Sizheng's teaching of the classics authoritative, ordered him to instruct the crown prince. When Emperor Xuan was Duke of Lu, he and the other princes all wore the scholar's blue collar, performed the ceremony of bundled dried meat, studied under Hu Sizheng, and all called him Master. Confucian scholars regarded it as an honor.
22
When Emperor Xuan succeeded, Hu Sizheng was transferred to Upper Grand General and Grand Director of Ceremonies. At that time Emperor Gaozu had just died and the coffin was still in temporary burial; the emperor wished to bury him quickly and ordered the court to debate the matter. Hu Sizheng, Inner Scribe Yuwen Xiaobo, and others firmly asked that the seven-month mourning rite be observed, but the emperor refused. When the emperor had been crown prince, Palace Superintendent Zheng Yi had been demoted and dismissed for failing to guide him properly. But the emperor had long been fond of Zheng Yi; he now made him Inner Scribe Senior Grand Master and entrusted him heavily. Zheng Yi thereupon presented new music: one sheng for each month, each sheng using sixteen pipes. The emperor ordered Hu Sizheng to discuss it with him; Sizheng rebutted the proposal in a memorial, and the emperor largely accepted his view. When the procession returned from Emperor Gaozu's tomb, the emperor wished to perform music and again ordered the court to debate whether it was permissible. Hu Sizheng said: "The Classic of Filial Piety says, 'On hearing music, one is not joyful.' If even hearing music brings no joy, how much less should one perform it?" Zheng Yi said: "Since the text says 'hearing music,' music clearly exists. One need only refrain from joy—how can one refuse to perform it altogether?" The emperor then followed Zheng Yi's view. Zheng Yi thereby nursed a grudge against him.
23
Thereafter the emperor wantonly overstepped all bounds, and his folly and cruelty grew daily. Hu Sizheng, deeply indebted to Emperor Gaozu and having once served as tutor, thought: if he could not remonstrate while alive, how could he face Emperor Gaozu after death? He then submitted a memorial of fierce remonstrance, listing the emperor's faults; the emperor would not listen. Zheng Yi thereupon slandered him, and Hu Sizheng was thrown into prison. The jailer Zhang Yuan took pity on him, used his girdle knife to break through the prison wall, and got him out. Zhang Yuan was tortured in interrogation but never spoke. Hu Sizheng was spared when an amnesty was declared.
24
When Emperor Wen of Sui took the throne, Hu Sizheng was restored to office by precedent, made Grand Tutor of the Crown Prince, and ordered to compile a book on music. At the beginning of Kaihuang he died. His son was Yan. Hu Sizheng compiled the Music Canon in ten scrolls.