1
資治通鑑第247卷
Comprehensive Mirror in Aid of Governance, Volume 247
2
【唐紀六十三】起昭陽大淵獻，盡閼逢困敦七月，凡一年有奇。
[Tang Records 63] From the year guihai (843) through the seventh month of the year jiazi (844)—a little over one year in all.
3
武宗至道昭肅孝皇帝中會昌三年（ 癸亥，公元八四三年）
In the third year of Huichang of Emperor Wuzong ( guihai, 843 CE)
4
春，正月，回鶻烏介可汗帥眾侵逼振武，劉沔遣麟州刺史石雄、都知兵馬使王逢帥沙陀朱邪赤心三部及契苾、拓跋三千騎襲其牙帳，沔自以大軍繼之。 雄至振武，登城望回鶻之眾寡，見氈車數十乘，從者皆衣朱碧，類華人。 使諜問之，曰：「公主帳也。」 雄使諜告之曰：「公主至此，家也，當求歸路！ 今將出兵擊可汗，請公主潛與侍從相保，駐車勿動！」 雄乃鑿城為十餘穴，引兵夜出，直攻可汗牙帳。 至其帳下，虜乃覺之。 可汗大驚，不知所為，棄輜重走，雄追擊之。 庚子，大破回鶻於殺胡山，可汗被瘡，與數百騎遁去，雄迎太和公主以歸。 斬首萬級，降其部落二萬餘人。 丙午，劉沔捷奏至。
In spring, the first month, the Uyghur khan Wujie led his forces against Zhenwu. Liu Mian sent Linzhou prefect Shi Xiong and military commissioner Wang Feng at the head of three Shatuo Zhuye Chixin divisions plus three thousand Qibi and Tuoba cavalry to strike the khan's encampment, while Mian followed with the main army. When Shi Xiong reached Zhenwu, he climbed the wall to gauge the Uyghur strength and saw several dozen felt-wheeled carts; the attendants all wore red and green in a style that looked Chinese. He sent a spy to ask and was told, "That is the princess's tent." Shi Xiong had the spy tell her, "Princess, you have reached home—now you should find your way back! We are about to attack the khan. Please stay quietly with your attendants, keep your carts where they are, and do not move!" Shi Xiong then broke more than ten holes through the wall, led his men out by night, and drove straight at the khan's encampment. Only when they reached the encampment did the enemy realize what was happening. The khan was thrown into panic and fled, abandoning his baggage train; Shi Xiong gave chase. On the day gengzi he routed the Uyghurs at Mount Shahu. The khan was wounded and fled with a few hundred riders, and Shi Xiong escorted Princess Taihe home. Ten thousand heads were taken, and more than twenty thousand tribesmen submitted. On the day bingwu, Liu Mian's victory report reached the capital.
5
李思忠入朝，自以回鶻降將，懼邊將猜忌，乞並弟思貞等及愛弘順皆歸闕庭。 上從之。
Li Sizhong came to court. As a former Uyghur defector, he feared the distrust of frontier commanders and asked that his brother Sizhen and the others, along with Ai Hongshun, all be brought back to the capital. The emperor agreed.
6
庚戌，以石雄為豐州都防禦使。 烏介可汗走保黑車子族，其潰兵多詣幽州降。
On the day gengxu, Shi Xiong was made Defender-in-Chief of Feng Prefecture. Khan Wujie fled for protection to the Heichezi tribe, while many of his broken troops surrendered at Youzhou.
7
二月，庚申朔，日有食之。
In the second month, on the first day (gengshen), there was a solar eclipse.
8
詔停歸義軍，以其士卒分隸諸道為騎兵，優給糧賜。
An edict disbanded the Army of Returning Allegiance and assigned its soldiers as cavalry to the various circuits, with generous rations and rewards.
9
辛未，黠戛斯遣使者注吾合索獻名馬二，詔太僕卿趙蕃飲勞之。 甲戌，上引對，班在勃海使之上。 上欲令趙蕃就頡戛斯求安西、北庭，李德裕等上言：「安西去京師七千餘里，北庭五千餘里，借使得之，當復置都護，以唐兵萬人戍之。 不知此兵於何處追發，饋運從何道得通，此乃用實費以易虛名，非計也。」 上乃止。
On the day xinwei, the Kirghiz sent the envoy Zhunwu Hesuo with two fine horses as tribute, and the emperor ordered Grand Master of the Stud Zhao Fan to entertain and reward him. On the day jiaxu, the emperor received him in audience and ranked him above the Bohai envoy. The emperor wanted Zhao Fan to ask the Kirghiz to return Anxi and Beiting. Li Deyu and others argued, "Anxi lies more than seven thousand li from the capital and Beiting more than five thousand. Even if we recovered them, we would have to restore the protectorates and station ten thousand Tang troops there. No one knows where those troops would come from or how supplies could reach them. That would mean spending real resources for an empty title—not a sound policy." The emperor dropped the idea.
10
中書侍郎、同平章事崔珙罷為右僕射。
Cui Gong, Vice Director of the Secretariat and Grand Councilor, was dismissed and made Right Vice Director of the Department of State Affairs.
11
黠戛斯求冊命，李德裕奏，宜與之結歡，令自將兵求殺使者罪人，及討黑車子。 上恐加可汗之名即不修臣禮，踵回鶻故事求歲遺及賣馬，猶豫未決。 德裕奏：「黠戛斯已自稱可汗，今欲藉其力，恐不可吝此名。 回鶻有平安、史之功，故歲賜絹二萬匹，且與之和市。 黠戛斯未嘗有功於中國，豈敢遽求賂遺乎！ 若慮其不臣，當與之約，必如回鶻稱臣，乃行冊命； 又當敘同姓以親之，使執子孫之禮。」 上從之。
The Kirghiz asked to be formally invested. Li Deyu argued that Tang should win them over and have them lead their own troops to punish those who had killed the envoy and to attack the Heichezi. The emperor worried that once granted the title of khan, they would refuse proper subject protocol and follow the Uyghur example by demanding annual gifts and horse-trade privileges. He hesitated, unable to decide. Li Deyu argued, "The Kirghiz already style themselves khan. If we mean to use their strength, we can hardly be stingy with the title. The Uyghurs had helped put down the An Lushan and Shi Siming rebellions, which is why they received twenty thousand bolts of silk each year and were allowed to trade peacefully. The Kirghiz have never done China any service—how would they dare demand gifts so soon! If we fear they will not submit, we should require them to declare themselves subjects as the Uyghurs did before granting investiture; and we should claim kinship through a shared surname so that they observe the rites owed by descendants." The emperor agreed.
12
庚寅，太和公主至京師，改封安定大長公主，詔宰相帥百官迎謁於章敬寺前。 公主詣光順門，去盛服，脫簪珥，謝回鶻負恩、和親無狀之罪。 上遣中使慰諭，然後入宮。 陽安等六公主不來慰問安定公主，各罰俸物及封絹。
On the day gengyin, Princess Taihe reached the capital. She was re-titled Grand Princess of Anding, and the chief ministers were ordered to lead the officials in welcoming her before Zhangjing Temple. At Guangshun Gate the princess put aside her finery, removed her hairpins and earrings, and apologized for the Uyghurs' ingratitude and the shame brought upon the marriage alliance. The emperor sent a palace envoy to comfort her, and only then did she enter the palace. The six princesses, including Yang'an, failed to visit Princess Anding; each was fined salary goods and fief silk.
13
賜魏博節度使何重順名弘敬。
He Chongshun, military commissioner of Weibo, was granted the personal name Hongjing.
14
三月，以太僕卿趙蕃為安撫黠戛斯使。 上命李德草《賜黠戛斯可汗書》，諭以「貞觀二十一年，黠戛斯先君身自入朝，授左屯衛將軍、堅昆都督，迄於天寶，朝貢不絕。 比為回鶻所隔，回鶻凌虐諸蕃，可汗能復仇雪怨，茂功壯節，近古無儔。 今回鶻殘兵不滿千人，散投山谷，可汗既與為怨，須盡殲夷。 倘留餘燼，必生後患。 又聞可汗受氏之原，與我同族，國家承北平太守之後，可汗乃都尉苗裔。 以此合族，尊卑可知。 今欲冊命可汗，特加美號，緣未知可汗意，且遣諭懷。 待趙蕃回日，別命使展禮。」 自回鶻至塞上及黠戛斯入貢，每有詔敕，上多命德裕草之。 德裕請委翰林學士，上曰：「學士不能盡人意，須卿自為之。」
In the third month, Grand Master of the Stud Zhao Fan was appointed envoy to the Kirghiz. The emperor ordered Li De to draft a letter to the Kirghiz khan explaining that "in the twenty-first year of Zhenguan, your forebear came to court in person and was appointed General of the Left Garrison Guard and Commander of Jiankun; tribute continued without break down to the Tianbao era. More recently you were cut off by the Uyghurs while they bullied the frontier peoples. That you could avenge those wrongs is a splendid achievement unmatched in recent memory. The Uyghur remnants now number fewer than a thousand, scattered in the valleys. Since you already bear a grudge against them, you must wipe them out completely. Leave any embers alive and trouble will follow. We also hear that your clan name shares our ancestry: the Tang house descends from the Administrator of Beiping, while you descend from a commandant of old. By this kinship, the proper order of senior and junior is clear. We now wish to invest you and bestow a fine title. Not yet knowing your wishes, we send this letter first to explain our intent. When Zhao Fan returns, we will send another envoy to perform the full ceremony." From the Uyghur crisis on the frontier through the Kirghiz tribute missions, the emperor usually had Li Deyu draft the edicts. Li Deyu asked to leave the drafting to the Hanlin academicians. The emperor replied, "The academicians cannot capture what I mean—you must write it yourself."
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劉沔奏：「歸義軍回鶻三千餘人及酋長四十三人准詔分隸諸道，皆大呼，連營據滹沱河，不肯從命，已盡誅之。 回鶻降幽州者前後三萬餘人，皆散錄諸道。」 李德裕追論維州悉怛謀事云：「維州據高山絕頂，三面臨江，在戎虜平川之沖，是漢地入兵之路。 初，河、隴並沒，唯此獨存。 吐蕃潛以婦人嫁此州門者，二十年後，兩男長成，竊開壘門，引兵夜入，遂為所陷，號曰無憂城。 從此得並力於西邊，更無虞於南路。 憑陵近甸，旰食累朝。 貞元中，韋皋欲經略河、湟，須此城為始。 萬旅盡銳，急攻數年，雖擒論莽熱而還，城堅卒不可克。 臣初到西蜀，外揚國威，中緝邊備。 其維州熟臣信令，空壁來歸。 臣始受其降，南蠻震懾，山西八國，皆願內屬。 其吐蕃合水、棲雞等城，既失險厄，自須抽歸，可減八處鎮兵，坐收千餘里舊地。 且維州未降前一年，吐蕃猶圍魯州，豈顧盟約！ 臣受降之初，指天為誓，面許奏聞，各加酬賞。 當時不與臣者，望風疾臣，詔臣執送悉怛謀等令彼自戮，臣寧忍以三百餘人命棄信偷安！ 累表陳論，乞垂矜捨，答詔嚴切，竟令執還。 體備三木，輿於竹畚，及將就路，冤叫嗚嗚，將吏對臣，無不隕涕。 其部送者更為蕃帥譏誚，雲既已降彼，何須送來！ 復以此降人戮於漢境之上，恣行殘忍，用固攜離，至乃擲其嬰孩，承以槍槊。 絕忠款之路，快凶虐之情，從古已來，未有此事。 雖時更一紀，而運屬千年，乞追獎忠魂，各加褒贈！」 詔贈悉怛謀右衛將軍。
Liu Mian reported, "More than three thousand Uyghurs of the Army of Returning Allegiance and forty-three chieftains, ordered by edict to be distributed among the circuits, shouted in protest, camped together on the Hutuo River, and refused to obey. They have all been executed. More than thirty thousand Uyghurs who had surrendered at Youzhou were distributed and registered among the circuits." Li Deyu reopened the case of Weizhou and Shedianmo, arguing, "Weizhou sits on a high peak with rivers on three sides. It commands the barbarians' open country and is the gateway by which troops enter Han territory. When the He and Long regions had both fallen, this was the only place left. The Tibetans secretly married women to men at the prefecture gates. Twenty years later, when the two sons had grown up, they opened the gate by night and let Tibetan troops in. The city fell and was renamed the City Without Worry. From then on they could concentrate their forces in the west and no longer feared attack from the south. They threatened the capital region itself, and for reign after reign the court ate late meals in alarm. During the Zhenyuan era, Wei Gao planned to recover the He and Huang regions and needed this city as his first objective. Ten thousand troops attacked at full strength for years. Though they captured Lun Mangre and withdrew, the city was too strong to be taken. When I first arrived in western Shu, I displayed the empire's power abroad while tightening frontier defenses at home. Weizhou, trusting my authority, surrendered with its defenses emptied. When I first accepted their surrender, the southern tribes were awed, and the eight states west of the mountains all wished to submit. Tibetan strongholds such as Heshui and Qiji, once deprived of their passes, would have to pull back. Eight garrisons could be reduced and more than a thousand li of old territory recovered without a fight. Besides, the year before Weizhou surrendered, the Tibetans were still besieging Luzhou—what did they care for treaties! When I first accepted the surrender, I swore by Heaven and promised on the spot to report it and reward every man. My opponents slandered me at every turn and ordered me to seize Shedianmo and the others and send them back for execution. I could not abandon my word and seek my own comfort at the cost of more than three hundred lives! I memorialized again and again begging for mercy, but the reply was stern, and in the end I was ordered to seize them and send them back. Fitted with the three wooden punishments and carried in bamboo baskets, they wailed in protest as they were led away. Every officer who faced me wept. The Tibetan commander mocked the escort, saying, "If they have already surrendered to you, why send them back!" Then those who had surrendered were slaughtered on Han soil in wanton cruelty to drive a wedge between us, even tossing infants into the air and catching them on spears. The path of loyal submission was closed and savage cruelty was indulged—nothing like it had ever happened before. Though more than a dozen years have passed, their loyalty deserves to be remembered for a thousand years. I beg that these loyal souls be posthumously honored!" An edict posthumously awarded Shedianmo the title General of the Right Guard.
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臣光曰：「論者多疑維州之取捨，不能決牛、李之是非。 臣以為昔荀吳圍鼓，鼓人或請以城叛，吳弗許，曰：「或以吾城叛，吾所甚惡也，人以城來，吾獨何好焉！ 吾不可以欲城而邇奸。」 使鼓人殺叛者而繕守備。 是時唐新與吐蕃修好而納其維州，以利言之，則維州大而信大； 以害言之，則維州緩而關中急。 然則為唐計者，宜何先乎？ 悉怛謀在唐則為向化，在吐蕃不免為叛臣，其受誅也又何矜焉！ 且德裕所言者利也，僧孺所言者義也，匹夫徇利而亡義猶恥之，況天子乎！ 譬如鄰人有牛，逸而入於家，或勸其兄歸之，或勸其弟攘之。 勸歸者曰：「攘之不義也，且致訟。」 勸攘者曰：「彼嘗攘吾羊矣，何義之拘！ 牛大畜也，鬻之可以富家。」 以是觀之，牛、李之是非，端可見矣。
Sima Guang comments: "Commentators are divided over the Weizhou decision and cannot settle the rights and wrongs of the Niu and Li factions. I believe the old case of Xun Wu's siege of Gu settles the matter. When someone in Gu offered to betray the city, Wu refused, saying, "If someone betrayed my city, I would hate it—why should I delight when someone brings a city to me! I must not court treachery just because I want the city." He had the people of Gu execute the traitor and repair their defenses. Tang had just made peace with Tibet and then accepted Weizhou from them. Measured by gain, both Weizhou and good faith were great prizes; measured by harm, Weizhou was distant while the Guanzhong heartland was urgent. For Tang's interests, which should have come first? Shedianmo was a defector to Tang and a traitor to Tibet—why pity his execution! Li Deyu spoke of profit; Niu Sengru spoke of righteousness. Even a common man is ashamed to pursue profit at the cost of righteousness—how much more an emperor! It is like a neighbor's ox that strayed into one's yard: one brother was urged to return it, the other to keep it. The one who urged return said, "Keeping it is wrong, and will only bring a lawsuit." The one who urged keeping it said, "They stole our sheep once—why worry about righteousness now! An ox is valuable livestock—sell it and the household grows rich." Seen in this light, the rights and wrongs of the Niu and Li factions are plain enough.
17
夏，四月，辛未，李德裕乞退就閒局。 上曰：「卿每辭位，使我旬日不得聽。 今大事皆未就，卿豈得求去！」
In summer, the fourth month, on the day xinwei, Li Deyu asked to step down to an inactive post. The emperor said, "Every time you resign, you keep me from holding court for ten days. Great affairs are still unfinished—how can you ask to leave now!"
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初，昭義節度使劉從諫累表言仇士良罪惡，士良亦言從諫窺伺朝廷。 及上即位，從諫有馬高九尺，獻之，上不受。 從諫以為士良所為，怒殺其馬，由是與朝廷相猜恨。 遂招納亡命，繕完兵械，鄰境皆潛為之備。 從諫榷馬牧及商旅，歲入錢五萬緡，又賣鐵、煮鹽亦數萬緡。 大商皆假以牙職，使通好諸道，因為販易。 商人倚從諫勢，所至多陵轢將吏，諸道皆惡之。 從諫疾病，謂妻裴氏曰：「吾以忠直事朝廷，而朝廷不明我志，諸道皆不我與。 我死，它人主此軍，則吾家無炊火矣！」 乃與幕客張谷、陳揚庭謀效河北諸鎮，以弟右驍衛將軍從素之子稹為牙內都知兵馬使，從子匡周為中軍兵馬使，孔目官王協為押牙親事兵馬使，以奴李士貴為使宅十將兵馬使，劉守義、劉襯忠、董可武、崔玄度分將牙兵。 谷，鄆州人，揚庭，洪州人也。 從諫尋薨，稹秘不發喪。 王協為稹謀曰：「正當如寶歷年樣為之，不出百日，旌節自至。 但嚴奉監軍，厚遺敕使，四境勿出兵，城中暗為備而已。」 使押牙姜崟奏求國醫，上遣中使解朝政以醫往問疾。 稹又逼監軍崔士康奏稱從諫疾病，請命其子稹為留後。 上遣供奉官薛士幹往諭指云：「恐從諫疾未平，宜且就東部療之； 俟稍瘳，別有任使。 仍遣稹入朝，必厚加官爵。」
Earlier, Liu Congjian, military commissioner of Zhaoyi, had repeatedly memorialized against the eunuch Qiu Shiliang's crimes, while Shiliang in turn accused Congjian of watching the court for weakness. When the emperor took the throne, Congjian offered him a horse nine chi tall, but the emperor refused it. Congjian blamed Shiliang, killed the horse in anger, and from that point mutual suspicion and resentment grew between him and the court. He began recruiting fugitives, rebuilding his arsenal, and neighboring territories quietly prepared against him. Congjian taxed horse pastures and merchant traffic for fifty thousand strings of cash a year, and iron sales and salt boiling brought in tens of thousands more. He appointed major merchants as brokers to maintain ties with other circuits and conduct trade on his behalf. Merchants traded on Congjian's power, bullying local officers wherever they went, and every circuit resented them. When Congjian fell ill, he told his wife Lady Pei, "I have served the court loyally and uprightly, yet the court does not understand me, and none of the circuits stand with me. When I die and another man takes this army, our household will have no fire in the hearth!" He then plotted with staff members Zhang Gu and Chen Yangting to follow the Hebei model: he made his nephew Zhen—son of his brother Right Brave Guard General Congsu—Inner Gate military commissioner; his nephew Kuangzhou central army commissioner; clerk Wang Xie personal military commissioner of the escort guard; his slave Li Shigui military commissioner of the commissioner's household guard; and Liu Shouyi, Liu Chenzhong, Dong Kewu, and Cui Xuandu each took command of part of the guard force. Gu was from Yanzhou; Yangting was from Hongzhou. Congjian soon died, and Zhen kept the death secret without announcing mourning. Wang Xie advised Zhen, "We should handle this exactly as in the Baoli reign. Within a hundred days the imperial commission will arrive on its own. All we need do is treat the army supervisor with strict respect, richly reward the imperial envoy, keep our troops inside the borders, and quietly prepare the city defenses." Zhen had escort officer Jiang Yin memorialize for an imperial physician. The emperor sent palace envoy Xie Chaozheng with a doctor to inquire after Congjian's condition. Zhen also forced army supervisor Cui Shikang to report that Congjian was ill and to ask that his son Zhen be made acting commissioner. The emperor sent palace attendant Xue Shigan with instructions: "I fear Congjian's illness is not yet over. He should go to the eastern capital for treatment for now; when he has recovered somewhat, another appointment will be made for him. Zhen should also come to court, and he will surely receive generous honors."
19
上以澤潞事謀於宰相，宰相多以為：「回鶻餘燼未滅，邊鄙猶須警備，復討澤潞，國力不支，請以劉稹權知軍事。」 諫官及群臣上言者亦然。 李德裕獨曰：「澤潞事體與河朔三鎮不同。 河朔習亂已久，人心難化。 是故累朝以來，置之度外。 澤潞近處心腹，一軍素稱忠義，嘗破走朱滔，擒盧從史。 頃時多用儒臣為帥，如李抱真成立此軍，德宗猶不許承襲，使李緘護喪歸東都。 敬宗不恤國務，宰相又無遠略，劉悟之死，因循以授從諫。 從諫跋扈難制，累上表迫脅朝廷，今垂死之際，復以兵權擅付豎子。 朝廷若又因而授之，則四方諸鎮誰不思效其所為，天子威令不復行矣！」 上曰：「卿以何術制之，果可克否？」 對曰：「稹所恃者河朔三鎮。 但得鎮、魏不與之同。 則稹無能為也。 若遣重臣往諭王元逵、何弘敬，以河朔自艱難以來，列聖許其傳襲，已成故事，與澤潞不同。 今朝廷將加兵澤潞，不欲更出禁軍至山東。 其山東三州隸昭義者，委兩鎮攻之。 兼令遍諭將士，以賊平之日厚加官賞。 苟兩鎮聽命，不從旁沮橈官軍，則稹必成擒矣！」 上喜曰：「吾與德裕同之，保無後悔。」 遂決意討稹，群臣言者不復入矣。 上命德裕草詔賜成德節度使王元逵、魏博節度使何弘敬，其略曰：「澤潞一鎮，與卿事體不同，勿為子孫之謀，欲存輔車之勢。 但能顯立功效，自然福及後昆。」 丁丑，上臨朝，稱其語要切，曰：「當如此直告之是也！」 又賜張仲武詔，以「回鶻餘燼未滅，塞上多虞，專委卿禦侮。」 元逵、弘敬得詔，悚息聽命。
The emperor consulted his chief ministers about Zelu. Most argued, "The Uyghur remnants are not yet destroyed and the frontier still needs guarding. Another campaign against Zelu would overstrain the empire. Liu Zhen should be allowed to act as military commissioner for the time being." Remonstrating officials and other courtiers who spoke up agreed. Li Deyu alone argued, "The Zelu situation is not the same as that of the three Hebei circuits. Hebei has long been accustomed to rebellion, and its people are hard to change. That is why successive reigns have treated it as beyond ordinary control. Zelu lies close to the heartland. Its army has always been counted loyal and righteous—it once routed Zhu Tao and captured Lu Congshi. In those days civil officials often commanded it. When Li Baozhen founded this army, even Emperor Dezong refused hereditary succession and had Li Qian escort the coffin back to the eastern capital. Emperor Jingzong neglected state affairs, and the chief ministers lacked foresight. When Liu Wu died, they simply drifted along and gave the command to Congjian. Congjian was overbearing and hard to control and repeatedly coerced the court with memorials. Now, on his deathbed, he arrogantly hands military power to a stripling. If the court grants this too, every circuit in the empire will think to do the same—and the emperor's authority will never be enforced again!" The emperor asked, "What method would you use to control this—and can it really be taken?" He replied, "Zhen relies on the three Hebei circuits. If only Zhenzhou and Weibo do not join him— then Zhen can do nothing. Send a senior minister to tell Wang Yuankui and He Hongjing that since the rebellions, successive emperors have allowed Hebei hereditary succession as established precedent—something Zelu is not. The court now means to send troops against Zelu and does not wish to dispatch imperial guards to Shandong again. The three Shandong prefectures under Zhaoyi should be left to the two circuits to attack. At the same time, tell all officers and soldiers that when the rebels are crushed they will receive generous honors and rewards. If the two circuits obey and do not obstruct the imperial army, Zhen will surely be captured!" The emperor said with pleasure, "I agree with Deyu. I guarantee we will not regret this." He resolved to campaign against Zhen, and the ministers who had opposed the idea were heard no more. The emperor ordered Li Deyu to draft edicts for Wang Yuankui of Chengde and He Hongjing of Weibo. The gist was: "The Zelu circuit is not the same as yours. Do not plot for your descendants or try to preserve a mutual-support alliance. Achieve clear merit, and blessings will naturally reach your descendants." On the day dingchou the emperor held court and praised the wording as sharp and direct. "That is how they should be told plainly!" He also sent Zhang Zhongwu an edict saying, "The Uyghur remnants are not yet destroyed and the frontier remains unsettled. You alone are entrusted with its defense." Yuankui and Hongjing received the edicts and obeyed in fear.
20
解朝政至上黨，劉稹見朝政曰：「相公危困，不任拜詔。」 朝政欲突入，兵馬使劉武德、董可武躡簾而立，朝政恐有他變。 遽走出。 稹贈贐直數千緡，復遣牙將梁叔文入謝。 薛士幹入境，俱不問從諫之疾，直為已知其死之意。 都押牙郭誼等乃大出軍，至龍泉驛迎候敕使，請用河朔事體。 又見監軍言之，崔士康懦怯，不敢違。 於是將吏扶稹出見士眾，發喪。 士幹竟不得入牙門，稹亦不受敕命。 誼，兗州人也。 解朝政覆命，上怒，杖之，配恭陵。 囚姜崟、梁叔文。 辛巳，始為從諫輟朝，贈太傅，詔劉稹護喪歸東都。 又召見劉從素，令以書諭稹，稹不從。 丁亥，以忠武節度使王茂元為河陽節度使，邠寧節度使王宰為忠武節度使。 茂元，棲曜之子； 宰，智興之子也。
When Xie Chaozheng reached Shangdang, Liu Zhen told him, "The commissioner is gravely ill and cannot receive the edict." Chaozheng tried to enter anyway. Military commissioners Liu Wude and Dong Kewu stepped behind the curtain to block him. Chaozheng feared trouble. He fled at once. Zhen sent several thousand strings of cash as gifts and dispatched guard officer Liang Shuwen to offer thanks. When Xue Shigan entered the territory, no one even asked about Congjian's illness—it was plain they already knew he was dead. Chief escort officer Guo Yi and others then marched out in force to Longquan Post to meet the imperial envoy and demanded Hebei-style protocol. They said the same to army supervisor Cui Shikang, who was too timid to refuse. The officers then brought Zhen out before the troops and announced mourning. Shigan never entered the headquarters gate, and Zhen refused the imperial command. Guo Yi was from Yanzhou. When Xie Chaozheng reported back, the emperor was furious, had him beaten, and sent him to serve at Gongling. Jiang Yin and Liang Shuwen were imprisoned. On the day xinsi the court finally suspended audience for Congjian's mourning, posthumously made him Grand Tutor, and ordered Liu Zhen to escort the coffin to the eastern capital. Liu Congsu was summoned and told to write instructing Zhen, but Zhen refused to obey. On the day dinghai, Wang Maoyuan of Zhongwu was made military commissioner of Heyang, and Wang Zai of Binning was made military commissioner of Zhongwu. Maoyuan was the son of Qi Yao; Zai was the son of Zhi Xing.
21
黃州刺史杜牧上李德裕書，自言：「嘗問淮西將董重制以三州之眾四歲不破之由，重質以為由朝廷徵兵太雜，客軍數少，既不能自成一軍，事須貼付地主。 勢贏力弱，心志不一，多致敗亡。 故初戰二年以來，戰則必勝，是多殺客軍。 及二年已後，客軍殫少，止與陳許、河陽全軍相搏，縱使唐州兵不能因虛取城，蔡州事力亦不支矣。 其時朝廷若使鄂州、壽州、唐州只保境，不用進戰，但用陳許、鄭滑兩道全軍，貼以宣、潤弩手，令其守隘，即不出一歲，無蔡州矣。 今者上黨之叛，復與淮西不同。 淮西為寇僅五十歲，其人味為寇之腴，見為寇之利，風俗益固，氣焰已成，自以為天下之兵莫與我敵，根深源闊，取之固難。 夫上黨則不然。 自安、史南下，不甚附柰； 建中之後，每奮忠義。 是以郳公抱真能窘田悅，走朱滔，常以孤窮寒苦之軍，橫折河朔強梁之眾。 以此證驗，人心忠赤，習尚專一，可以盡見。 劉悟卒，從諫求繼，與扶同者，只鄆州隨來中軍二千耳。 值寶歷多故，因以授之。 今才二十餘歲，風俗未改，故老尚存，雖欲劫之，必不用命。 今成德、魏博雖盡節效順，亦不過圍一城，攻一堡，係累稚老而已。 若使河陽萬人為壘，窒天井之口，高壁深塹，勿與之戰。 只以忠武、武寧兩軍，貼以青州五千精甲，宣、潤二千弩手，逕搗上黨，不過數月，必覆其巢穴矣！」 時德裕制置澤潞，亦頗采牧言。
Du Mu, prefect of Huangzhou, wrote Li Deyu a letter saying, "I once asked the Huaixi general Dong Chongzhi why three circuits' armies could not break the rebels in four years. Chongzhi said the court's mobilization was too mixed: the guest armies were too few to fight as independent forces and had to be attached to local commanders. Numbers looked strong but force was weak and minds were divided—so defeat followed. In the first two years of fighting they won every battle—because they were killing guest troops in large numbers. After the second year the guest armies were nearly gone, and the rebels fought only the full Chenxu and Heyang armies. Even if Tangzhou troops could not exploit openings to take cities, Caizhou's strength could no longer hold. If the court had then kept Ezhou, Shouzhou, and Tangzhou on the defensive and used only the full Chenxu and Zheng-Hua armies, supplemented with crossbowmen from Xuan and Run, to hold the passes, Caizhou would have fallen within a year. The present rebellion at Shangdang is different again from Huaixi. Huaixi had been in rebellion for only fifty years, yet its people had tasted the profits of banditry, custom had hardened, and arrogance had set in. They believed no army under Heaven could match them. With deep roots and broad support, they were inherently hard to take. Shangdang is not like that. Since An and Shi marched south, it did not readily join the rebellion; and after the Jianzhong era it repeatedly showed loyalty and righteousness. That is how Duke of Xing Li Baozhen could corner Tian Yue and rout Zhu Tao—often using a poor, isolated army to break the strongest forces of Hebei. This shows that the people's hearts remain loyal and their customs upright. When Liu Wu died, Congjian sought succession—and only two thousand central-army men who had come from Yanzhou supported him. The Baoli reign was troubled, and so command was granted him. Barely twenty years have passed. Custom is unchanged and old veterans still live. Even if Zhen tries to coerce them, they will not obey. Even if Chengde and Weibo give full loyalty, they will do no more than besiege a city or assault a fort and capture women, children, and the aged. If ten thousand Heyang troops fortify the mouth of Tianjing Pass with high walls and deep ditches and refuse battle— and the Zhongwu and Wuning armies, supplemented with five thousand elite armored troops from Qingzhou and two thousand crossbowmen from Xuan and Run, strike straight at Shangdang—in a few months their stronghold will surely fall!" As Li Deyu arranged the Zelu campaign, he largely adopted Du Mu's advice.
22
上雖外尊寵仇士良，內實忌惡之。 士良頗覺之，遂以老病求散秩，詔以左衛上將軍兼內侍監、知省事。
Outwardly the emperor honored Qiu Shiliang, but inwardly he resented him. Shiliang sensed this and, citing old age and illness, asked for a nominal post. An edict made him General-in-Chief of the Left Guard while retaining him as Palace Domestic Supervisor in charge of palace affairs.
23
李德裕言於上曰：「議者皆雲劉悟有功，稹未可亟誅，宜全恩禮。 請下百官議，以盡人情。」 上曰：「悟亦何功，當時迫於救死耳，非素心徇國也。 籍使有功，父子為將相二十餘年，國家報之足矣，稹何得復自言！ 朕以為凡有功當顯賞，有罪亦不可苟免也。」 德裕曰：「陛下之言，誠得理國之要。」
Li Deyu told the emperor, "Those who discuss this say Liu Wu had merit and Zhen should not be punished hastily—they urge full courtesy instead. Send the matter down for discussion among the officials so that public sentiment is fully heard." The emperor replied, "What merit did Wu have? At the time he was saving his own life—that was not lifelong devotion to the state. Even if he had merit, father and son served as generals and ministers for more than twenty years—the state has repaid them enough. How can Zhen claim the command for himself! I hold that merit deserves clear reward, and guilt cannot be casually forgiven." Li Deyu said, "Your Majesty's words truly grasp the essentials of governing the state."
24
五月，李德裕言太子賓客、分司李宗閔與劉從諫交通，不宜置之東都。 戊戌，以宗閔為湖州刺史。
In the fifth month, Li Deyu said that Li Zongmin, Crown Prince's Guest at the secondary capital, had dealings with Liu Congjian and should not remain in the eastern capital. On the day wuxu, Li Zongmin was made prefect of Huzhou.
25
河陽節度使王茂元以步騎三千守萬善； 河東節度使劉沔步騎二千守芒車關，步兵一千五百軍榆社； 成德節度使王元逵以步騎三千守臨洺，掠堯山； 河中節度使陳夷行以步騎一千守翼城，步兵五百益冀氏。 辛丑，制削奪劉從諫及子稹官爵，以元逵為澤潞北面招討使，何弘敬為南面招討使，與夷行、劉沔、茂元合力攻討。 先是河北諸鎮有自立者，朝廷必先有弔祭使，次冊贈使、宣慰使繼往商度軍情。 必不可與節，則別除一官； 俟軍中不聽出，然後始用兵。 故常及半歲，軍中得繕完為備。 至是，宰相亦欲且遣使開諭，上即命下詔討之。 王元逵受詔之日，出師屯趙州。
Wang Maoyuan of Heyang garrisoned Wanshan with three thousand infantry and cavalry; Liu Mian of Hedong garrisoned Mangche Pass with two thousand infantry and cavalry and stationed fifteen hundred foot soldiers at Yushe; Wang Yuankui of Chengde garrisoned Linming with three thousand infantry and cavalry and raided Yaoshan; Chen Yixing of Hezhong garrisoned Yicheng with one thousand infantry and cavalry and added five hundred foot soldiers at Jishi. On the day xinchou an edict stripped Liu Congjian and his son Zhen of rank and titles. Yuankui was made northern campaign commissioner against Zelu, Hongjing southern campaign commissioner, and together with Yixing, Liu Mian, and Maoyuan they were to attack jointly. Previously, when a Hebei circuit installed its own commander, the court would first send a mourning envoy, then investiture, condolence, and pacification envoys in succession to gauge army sentiment. If the commission absolutely could not be granted, another office would be appointed instead; and only when the army refused to obey would troops finally be deployed. This often took half a year, giving the army time to repair defenses and prepare. This time the chief ministers also wanted to send envoys first, but the emperor immediately ordered an edict of campaign. The day Wang Yuankui received the edict, he marched out and encamped at Zhao Prefecture.
26
壬寅，以翰林學士承旨崔鉉為中書侍郎、同平章事。 鉉，元略之子也。 上夜召學士韋琮，以鉉名授之，令草制，宰相、樞密皆不之知。 時樞密使劉行深、楊欽義皆願愨，不敢預事，老宦者尤之曰：「此由劉、楊懦怯，墮敗舊風故也。」 悰，乾度之子也。
On the day renyin, Hanlin Academician-in-Chief Cui Xuan was made Vice Director of the Secretariat and Grand Councilor. Cui Xuan was the son of Yuanlue. That night the emperor summoned Academician Wei Cong, gave him Cui Xuan's name, and ordered him to draft the appointment edict—neither the chief ministers nor the privy council knew of it. At the time Privy Councilors Liu Xingshen and Yang Qinyi both preferred to keep their heads down and would not intervene in affairs. Older eunuchs blamed them, saying, "This is because Liu and Yang are cowardly and have ruined the old ways." Cong was the son of Qiandu.
27
以武寧節度使李彥佐為晉絳行營諸軍節度招討使。 劉沔自代州還太原。
Li Yanzuo, military commissioner of Wuning, was appointed commander-in-chief and pacification commissioner of the Jin-Jiang campaign headquarters. Liu Mian returned from Dai Prefecture to Taiyuan.
28
築望仙台於禁中。
The Platform for Viewing Immortals was built inside the palace.
29
六月，王茂元遣兵馬使馬繼等將步騎二千軍於天井關南科斗店，劉稹遣衙內十將薛茂卿將親軍二千拒之。
In the sixth month, Wang Maoyuan sent Cavalry Commander Ma Ji and others with two thousand infantry and cavalry to hold Kedou Post south of Tianjing Pass. Liu Zhen sent Palace Inner General Xue Maoqing with two thousand personal troops to oppose them.
30
黠戛斯可汗遣將軍溫仵合入貢。 上賜之書，諭以速平回鶻、黑車子，乃遣使行冊命。
The Kirghiz khan sent General Wenwuhe to court with tribute. The emperor sent him a letter instructing him to speedily pacify the Uyghurs and the Heichezi, then dispatched envoys to invest him formally.
31
癸酉，仇士良以左衛上將軍、內侍監致仕。 其黨送歸私第，士良教以固權寵之術曰：「天子不可令閒，常宜以奢靡娛其耳目，使日新月盛，無暇更及它事，然後吾輩可以得志。 慎勿使之讀書，親近儒生，彼見前代興亡，心知憂懼，則吾蜚疏斥矣。」 其黨拜謝而去。
On the day guiyou, Qiu Shiliang retired as General-in-Chief of the Left Guard and Palace Domestic Supervisor. His followers escorted him home. Shiliang taught them how to hold on to power: "Never let the emperor have idle time. Keep his eyes and ears filled with luxury and pleasure, day after day, until he has no room for anything else—then men like us can do as we please. Never let him read books or keep company with Confucian scholars. If he sees how dynasties rise and fall and learns to worry, we will be slandered and driven out." His followers bowed in thanks and left.
32
丙子，詔王元逵、李彥佐、劉沔、王茂元、何弘敬以七月中旬五道齊進，劉稹求降皆不得受。 又詔劉沔自將兵取仰車關路以臨賊境。
On the day bingzi, an edict ordered Wang Yuankui, Li Yanzuo, Liu Mian, Wang Maoyuan, and He Hongjing to advance together along five routes in mid-seventh month. None of Liu Zhen's offers to surrender were to be accepted. Another edict ordered Liu Mian to lead troops personally along the Yangche Pass route to threaten the rebel border.
33
吐蕃鄯州節度使尚婢婢，世為吐蕃相，婢婢好讀書，不樂仕進，國人敬之。 年四十餘，彝泰贊普強起之，使鎮鄯州。 婢婢寬厚沉勇，有謀略，訓練士卒多精勇。 論恐熱雖名義兵，實謀篡國，忌婢婢，恐襲其後，欲先滅之。 是月，大舉兵擊婢婢，旌旗雜畜千里不絕。 至鎮西，大風震電，天火燒殺裨將十餘人，雜畜以百數，恐熱惡之，盤桓不進。 婢婢謂其下曰：「恐熱之來，視我如螻蟻，以為不足屠也。 今遇天災，猶豫不進，吾不如迎伏以卻之，使其志益驕而不為備，然後可圖也。」 乃遣使以金帛、牛酒犒師，且致書言：「相公舉義兵以匡國難，闔境之內，孰不向風！ 苟遣一介，賜之折簡，敢不承命！ 何必遠辱士眾，親臨下籓！ 婢婢資性愚僻，惟嗜讀書，先贊普授以籓維，誠為非據，夙夜慚惕，惟求退居。 相公若賜以骸骨，聽歸田骨，乃愜平生之素願也。」 恐熱得書喜，遍示諸將曰：「婢婢惟把書券，安知用兵！ 待吾得國，當位以宰相，坐之於家，亦無所用也。」 乃復為書，勤厚答之，引兵歸。 婢婢聞之，撫髀笑曰：「我國無主，則歸大唐，豈能事此犬鼠乎！」
Shang Bibi, Tibetan military commissioner of Shan Prefecture, came from a family that had produced chancellors for generations. She loved books and had no taste for office; her countrymen respected her. When she was in her forties, Zanpu Yitai pressed her into service and posted her to Shan Prefecture. Bibi was generous, resolute, and brave, skilled in strategy, and the troops she trained were many of them elite fighters. Lun Kongre called his army a righteous force, but in truth he meant to seize power. He resented Bibi, feared an attack from the rear, and wanted to destroy her first. That month he marched in force against Bibi; banners, flags, and herds stretched unbroken for a thousand li. At Zhenxi, violent wind and thunder brought fire from heaven that killed more than ten of his subordinate generals and hundreds of livestock. Kongre took this as a bad omen and halted without advancing. Bibi told her officers, "Kongre comes treating me like an ant he need not bother to crush. Now heaven has struck him and he hangs back in doubt. Better to welcome him and feign submission, let his pride swell until he drops his guard—then we can strike." She sent envoys with gold, silks, cattle, and wine to reward his army, along with a letter: "You have raised a righteous army to save the realm—who in these lands would not rally to you? Send but one messenger with a brief note, and I shall obey at once! Why trouble your troops to march all this way to my humble border? I am dull and unfit for command; I care only for books. The late zanpu gave me this frontier post undeservedly, and day and night I live in shame and fear, longing only to step aside. If you would grant me retirement and let me return to my homestead, that would fulfill the wish I have held all my life. Kongre was delighted with the letter and showed it to all his generals. "Bibi knows only how to clutch book scrolls—what does she know of war! When I take the realm, I will make her chancellor and keep her at home—she will be good for nothing even then." He wrote back with warm courtesy and marched home. When Bibi heard this, she slapped her thigh and laughed. "If our country has no worthy ruler, I will go over to Great Tang. Why would I serve this cur?"
34
秋，七月，以山南東道節度使盧鈞為昭義節度招撫使。 朝廷以鈞在襄陽寬厚有惠政，得眾心，故使領昭義以招懷之。
In autumn, the seventh month, Lu Jun, military commissioner of eastern Shannan, was appointed pacification commissioner of Zhaoyi. The court chose him because his generous rule in Xiangyang had won popular support, hoping he could win over Zhaoyi the same way.
35
上遣刑部侍郎兼御史中丞李回宣慰河北三鎮，令幽州乘秋早平回鶻，鎮、魏早平澤潞。 回，太祖之八世孫也。 甲辰，李德裕言於上曰：「臣見向日河朔用兵，諸道利於出境仰給度支。 或陰與賊通，借一縣一柵據之，自以為功，坐食轉輸，延引歲時。 今請賜諸軍詔指，令王元逵取邢州，何弘敬取洺州，王茂元取澤州，李彥佐、劉沔取潞州，毋得取縣。」 上從之。
The emperor sent Li Hui, Vice Minister of Justice and concurrent Censor-in-Chief, to reassure the three Hebei circuits, ordering Youzhou to crush the Uyghurs early that autumn and Zhen and Wei to finish off Zelu quickly. Li Hui was an eighth-generation descendant of Taizu. On the day jiachen, Li Deyu told the emperor, "In past Heshuo campaigns, the various circuits profited from crossing their borders and living off central supply. Some secretly colluded with the enemy, seized a county or stockade and called it a victory, then sat back eating convoy supplies and dragging the war out for years. I ask that edicts go to every army: Wang Yuankui is to take Xing Prefecture, He Hongjing Ming Prefecture, Wang Maoyuan Ze Prefecture, and Li Yanzuo and Liu Mian Lu Prefecture—no seizing individual counties. The emperor agreed.
36
晉絳行營節度使李彥佐自發徐州，行甚緩，又請休兵於絳州，兼請益兵。 李德裕言於上曰：「彥佐逗遛顧望，殊無討賊之意，所請皆不可許，宜賜詔切責，令進軍翼城。」 上從之。 德裕因請以天德防禦使石雄為彥佐之副，俟至軍中，令代之。 乙巳，以雄為晉絳行營節度副使，仍詔彥佐進屯翼城。
Li Yanzuo, commander of the Jin-Jiang campaign headquarters, left Xuzhou at a crawl, then asked to rest his troops at Jiang Prefecture and for reinforcements. Li Deyu told the emperor, "Yanzuo is stalling and shows no real will to fight. Grant none of his requests. Send an edict rebuking him sharply and order him to advance on Yicheng. The emperor agreed. Li Deyu also asked that Shi Xiong, defense commissioner of Tiande, be made Yanzuo's deputy with orders to replace him once he reached camp. On the day yisi, Shi Xiong was appointed deputy commander of the Jin-Jiang campaign headquarters, and Yanzuo was ordered to advance and encamp at Yicheng.
37
劉稹上表自陳：「亡父從諫為李訓雪冤，言仇士良罪惡，由此為權幸所疾，謂臣父潛懷異志，臣所以不敢舉族歸朝。 乞陛下稍垂寬察，活臣一方！」 何弘敬亦為之奏雪，皆不報。 李回至河朔，何弘敬、王元逵、張仲武皆具橐鞬郊迎，立於道左，不敢令人控馬，讓制使先行，自兵興以來，未之有也。 回明辯有膽氣，三鎮無不奉詔。
Liu Zhen memorialized in his own defense: "My late father Congjian vindicated Li Xun and denounced Qiu Shiliang's crimes. For that the powerful at court hated him and accused him of hidden disloyalty. That is why I dare not bring my whole clan back to the capital. I beg Your Majesty to look on us with a little mercy and spare my circuit! He Hongjing also memorialized on his behalf. The court did not respond to either. When Li Hui reached Heshuo, He Hongjing, Wang Yuankui, and Zhang Zhongwu all met him outside the city in full harness, standing to the side of the road without attendants to hold their horses, letting the imperial envoy pass first—nothing like it had been seen since the war began. Li Hui was sharp and bold, and all three circuits obeyed the edicts.
38
王元逵奏拔宣務柵，擊堯山。 劉稹遣兵救堯山，元逵擊敗之，詔切責李彥佐、劉沔、王茂元，使速進兵逼賊境，且稱元逵之功以激厲之，加元逵同平章事。
Wang Yuankui reported capturing Xuannu Stockade and attacking Yaoshan. Liu Zhen sent troops to relieve Yaoshan; Yuankui routed them. An edict sharply rebuked Li Yanzuo, Liu Mian, and Wang Maoyuan and ordered them to press the rebel border at once. It also praised Yuankui's achievement to spur the others on and made him Grand Councilor.
39
八月，乙丑，昭義大將李丕來降。 議者或謂賊故遣丕降，欲以疑誤官軍。 李德裕言於上曰：「自用兵半年，未有降者，今安問誠之與詐？ 且須厚賞以勸將來，但不可置之要地耳。」
In the eighth month, on the day yichou, Li Pi, a senior Zhaoyi general, defected. Some argued the rebels had sent Pi deliberately to sow doubt and mislead the government armies. Li Deyu told the emperor, "We have had no defectors in six months of fighting—why now ask whether this is sincere or a trick? Reward him generously to encourage others—but do not give him a critical post."
40
上從容言：「文宗好聽外議，諫官言事多不著名，有如匿名書。」 李德裕曰：「臣頃在中書，文宗猶不爾。 此乃李訓、鄭注教文宗以術御下，遂成此風。 人主但當推誠任人，有欺罔者，威以明刑，孰敢哉！」 上善之。
The emperor remarked casually, "Emperor Wenzong liked to heed outside opinion. Remonstrating officials often spoke without signing their names, as if writing anonymous letters. Li Deyu said, "When I was in the Secretariat, Wenzong had not yet been like that. Li Xun and Zheng Zhu taught Wenzong tricks for controlling his ministers—that is how this habit took hold. A ruler should simply trust his men openly. Let clear punishment fall on anyone who deceives him—who would dare? The emperor approved.
41
王元逵前鋒入邢州境已逾月，何弘敬猶未出師，元逵屢有密表，稱弘敬懷兩端。 丁卯，李德裕上言：「忠武累戰有功，軍聲頗振。 王宰年力方壯，謀略可稱。 請賜弘敬詔，以『河陽、河東皆閡山險，未能進軍，賊屢出兵焚掠晉、絳。 今遣王宰將忠武全軍徑魏博，直抵磁州，以分賊勢。』 弘敬必懼，此攻心伐謀之術也。」 從之。 詔宰悉選步騎精兵自相、魏趣磁州。 甲戌，薛茂卿破科斗寨，擒河陽大將馬繼等，焚掠小寨一十七，距懷州才十餘里。 茂卿以無劉稹之命，故不敢入。 時議者鼎沸，以為劉悟有功，不可絕其嗣。 又，從諫養精兵十萬，糧支十年，如何可取！ 上亦疑之，以問李德裕，對曰：「小小進退，兵家之常。 願陛下勿聽外議，則成功必矣！」 上乃謂宰相曰：「為我語朝士：有上疏沮議者，我必於賊境上斬之！」 議者乃止。 何弘敬聞王宰將至，恐忠武兵入魏境，軍中有變，蒼黃出師。 丙子，弘敬奏，已自將全軍渡漳水，趣磁州。
Wang Yuankui's vanguard had been inside Xing Prefecture for more than a month, but He Hongjing still had not marched. Yuankui sent repeated secret memorials accusing Hongjing of wavering. On the day dingmao, Li Deyu submitted, "Zhongwu has fought well again and again, and its military reputation is strong. Wang Zai is young and vigorous, and his strategy is sound. Send Hongjing an edict saying, "Heyang and Hedong are blocked by mountains and cannot advance. The rebels keep raiding Jin and Jiang. We are sending Wang Zai with the full Zhongwu army through Weibo straight to Ci Prefecture to split the rebel force." Hongjing will be terrified. That is the art of attacking the mind rather than the field." The emperor agreed. An edict ordered Wang Zai to take the best infantry and cavalry from Xiang and Wei and march on Ci Prefecture. On the day jiaxu, Xue Maoqing stormed Kedou Stockade, captured Heyang general Ma Ji and others, burned seventeen outposts, and came within little more than ten li of Huaizhou. Maoqing lacked orders from Liu Zhen and did not dare advance farther. At court opinion boiled over: Liu Wu had done the empire a service, and his line must not be extinguished. Besides, Congjian had left a hundred thousand elite troops and ten years of grain—how could Zelu be taken! The emperor had doubts too and asked Li Deyu, who answered, "Small gains and setbacks are normal in war. If Your Majesty ignores outside talk, victory is certain! The emperor then told the chief ministers, "Tell the court for me: anyone who memorializes to obstruct this campaign, I will behead on the rebel border! The critics fell silent. When He Hongjing heard Wang Zai was coming, he feared Zhongwu troops entering Weibo might spark a mutiny and hurriedly took the field. On the day bingzi, Hongjing reported that he had personally led his full army across the Zhang River toward Ci Prefecture.
42
庚辰，李德裕上言：「河陽兵力寡弱，自科斗店之敗，賊勢愈熾。 王茂元復有疾，人情危怯，欲退保懷州。 臣竊見元和以來諸賊，常視官軍寡弱之處，並力攻之，一軍不支，然後更攻它處。 今魏博未與賊戰，西軍閡險不進，故賊得並力南下。 若河陽退縮，不惟虧沮軍聲，兼恐震驚洛師。 望詔王宰更不之磁州，亟以忠武軍應援河陽； 不惟扞蔽東都，兼可臨制魏博。 若慮全軍供餉難給，且令發先鋒五千人赴河陽，亦足張聲勢。」 甲申，又奏請敕王宰以全軍繼進，仍急以器械繒帛助河陽窘乏。 上皆從之。 王茂元軍萬善，劉稹遣牙將張巨、劉公直等會薛茂卿共攻之，期以九月朔圍萬善。 乙酉，公直等潛師先過萬善南五里，焚雍店。 巨引兵繼之，過萬善，覘知城中守備單弱，欲專有功，遂攻之。 日昃，城且拔，乃使人告公直等。 時義成軍適至，茂元困急，欲帥眾棄城走。 都虞候孟章遮馬諫曰：「賊眾自有前卻，半在雍店，半在此，乃亂兵耳。 今義成軍才至，尚未食，聞僕射走，則自潰矣。 願且強留！」 茂元乃止。 會日暮，公直等不至，巨引兵退，始登山，微雨晦黑，自相驚曰：「追兵近矣！」 皆走，人馬相踐，墜崖谷死者甚眾。
On the day gengchen, Li Deyu submitted, "Heyang is weak. Since the defeat at Kedou Post, the rebels have grown bolder. Wang Maoyuan was ill again, morale was shaky, and his men wanted to fall back on Huaizhou. Since the Yuanhe era, rebels have always looked for the weakest government force, concentrated against it, and once that army broke, moved on elsewhere. Weibo still has not engaged the enemy, and the western armies are stuck in the mountains, so the rebels can mass and push south. If Heyang pulls back, it will not only wreck morale but may panic Luoyang. I ask that Wang Zai be redirected from Ci Prefecture and that the Zhongwu army be sent at once to reinforce Heyang; that will shield the eastern capital and also keep Weibo in check. If supplying the whole army is too hard, send five thousand vanguard troops to Heyang—that alone would stiffen our position. On the day jiashen, he submitted again, asking that Wang Zai follow with the full army and that weapons, silks, and cloth be rushed to relieve Heyang's shortages. The emperor approved all of it. Wang Maoyuan held Wanshan. Liu Zhen sent generals Zhang Ju and Liu Gongzhi to join Xue Maoqing in a combined attack, set for the first day of the ninth month. On the day yiyou, Gongzhi and the others slipped past Wanshan by five li to the south and burned Yong Post. Zhang Ju followed, passed Wanshan, saw how thinly the town was held, wanted the credit for himself, and attacked. By late afternoon the town was nearly taken before he sent word to Gongzhi and the rest. The Yicheng army had just arrived. Maoyuan was in desperate straits and wanted to abandon the town and flee. Chief Commandant Meng Zhang seized his bridle and pleaded, "The enemy is split—half at Yong Post, half here. They are a disordered force. The Yicheng troops have just arrived and have not even eaten. If they hear you run, they will break on their own. Please hold your ground! Maoyuan stayed. Night fell before Gongzhi and the others arrived. Ju pulled back and had just begun to climb the mountain when a drizzle deepened the dark. His men panicked one another, crying, "Pursuers are close! They all fled. Men and horses trampled one another, and a great many plunged off the cliffs and perished in the ravines below.
43
上以王茂元、王宰兩節度使共處河陽非宜，庚寅，李德裕等奏：「茂元習吏事而非將才，請以宰為河陽行營攻討使。 茂元病癒，止令鎮河陽，病困亦免他虞。」 九月，辛卿，以宰兼河陽行營攻討使。
The Emperor judged it unwise for two military governors, Wang Maoyuan and Wang Zai, to hold Heyang together. On gengyin, Li Deyu and his colleagues submitted a memorial: "Maoyuan is skilled in administration but lacks the talent of a field commander. We ask that Zai be appointed Heyang Forward-Camp Attack and Pacification Commissioner. Maoyuan has recovered from his illness and need only be left to hold Heyang. If he falls ill again, that will spare us other concerns as well. In the ninth month, on the xinqi cyclical day, Zai was also made Heyang Forward-Camp Attack and Pacification Commissioner.
44
何弘敬奏拔肥鄉、平恩，殺傷甚眾。 得劉稹榜貼，皆謂官軍為賊，雲遇之即須痛殺。 癸已，上謂宰相：「何弘敬已克兩縣，可釋前疑。 既有殺傷，雖欲持兩端，不可得已。」 乃加弘敬檢校左僕射。
He Hongjing reported that he had taken Feixiang and Ping'en, with heavy casualties on both sides. Among the captured materials were Liu Zhen's posted proclamations, which called the imperial armies bandits and ordered that anyone who encountered them was to kill them without quarter. On guisi, the Emperor told his chancellors, "He Hongjing has already taken two counties. Our earlier doubts about him can be put to rest. Now that blood has been shed, even if he wanted to sit on the fence, he no longer can. He Hongjing was then promoted to acting Left Vice Censor-in-Chief.
45
丙午，河陽奏王茂元薨。 李德裕奏：「王宰止可令以忠武節度使將萬善營兵，不可使兼領河陽，恐其不愛河陽州縣，恣為侵擾，又，河陽節度先領懷州刺史，常以判官攝事，割河南五縣租賦隸河陽，不若遂以五縣置孟州，其懷州別置刺史。 俟昭義平日，仍割澤州隸河陽節度，則太行之險不在昭義，而河陽遂為重鎮，東都無復憂矣！」 上采其言。 戊申，以河南尹敬昕為河陽節度、懷孟觀察使，王宰將行營以扞敵，昕供饋餉而已。
On bingwu, Heyang reported the death of Wang Maoyuan. Li Deyu submitted a memorial: "Wang Zai should be limited to leading the Wanshan Camp as Military Governor of Zhongwu. He must not also command Heyang, lest he care nothing for Heyang's prefectures and counties and plunder them at will. Furthermore, the Heyang governor had long doubled as Prefect of Huai, with a subordinate judge handling day-to-day affairs, while five Henan counties had their tax revenues assigned to Heyang. It would be better to carve those five counties into a new Meng Prefecture and appoint a separate prefect for Huai. Once Zhaoyi is pacified, Ze Prefecture should be transferred to Heyang as well. Then the Taihang passes will no longer be in rebel hands, Heyang will become a true stronghold, and the Eastern Capital will be secure at last! The Emperor accepted his advice. On wushen, Jing Xin, Intendant of Henan, was appointed Military Governor of Heyang and Inspector of Huai and Meng. Wang Zai would command the forward camp against the enemy, while Xin would be responsible only for supplying the army.
46
庚戌，以石雄代李彥佐為晉絳行營節度使，令自冀氏取潞州，仍分兵屯翼城以備侵軼。
On gengxu, Shi Xiong replaced Li Yanzuo as Military Governor of the Jin- and Jiang-Ford Forward Camp. He was ordered to advance on Luzhou from Jishi and to detach troops to hold Yicheng against enemy raids.
47
是月，吐蕃論恐熱屯大夏川，尚婢婢遣其將厖結心及莽羅薛呂將精兵五萬擊之。 至河州南，莽羅薛呂伏兵四萬於險阻，厖結心伏萬人於柳林中，以千騎登山，飛矢系書罵之。 恐熱怒，將兵數萬追之，厖結心陽敗走，時為馬乏不進之狀。 恐熱追之益急，不覺行數十里，伏兵發，斷其歸路，夾擊之。 會大風飛沙，溪谷皆溢，恐熱大敗，伏屍五十里，溺死者不可勝數，恐熱單騎遁歸。
That month, the Tibetan warlord Lun Quren encamped on the Daxia River. Shang Pipi sent her generals Pang Jiexin and Mangluo Xuelü at the head of fifty thousand elite troops to attack him. South of He Prefecture, Mangluo Xuelü concealed forty thousand men in rugged ground while Pang Jiexin hid ten thousand in a willow grove. A thousand horsemen then rode up the heights and shot arrows bearing insults tied to their shafts. Enraged, Quren set off in pursuit with tens of thousands of men. Pang Jiexin pretended to flee in defeat, deliberately giving the appearance of horses too weary to keep moving. Quren pressed the pursuit harder and harder until, without noticing, he had gone dozens of li. Then the ambush closed in, his retreat was cut off, and he was attacked from both flanks. A fierce wind whipped up sand and dust, streams and ravines flooded, and Quren's army collapsed in disaster. Dead bodies littered the ground for fifty li, drowned men were beyond counting, and Quren escaped alone on horseback.
48
石雄代李彥佐之明日，即引兵逾烏嶺，破五寨，殺獲千計。 時王宰軍萬善，劉沔軍石會，皆顧望未進。 上得雄捷書，喜甚。 冬，十月，庚申，臨朝，謂宰相曰：「雄真良將！」 李德裕因言：「比年前潞州市有男子磬折唱曰：『石雄七千人至矣！』 劉從諫以為妖言，斬之。 破潞州者必雄也。」 詔賜雄帛為優賞，雄悉置軍門，自依士卒例先取一匹，餘悉分將士，故士卒樂為之致死。
The day after replacing Li Yanzuo, Shi Xiong led his men over Wuling Pass, stormed five stockades, and killed or captured thousands. Meanwhile Wang Zai's army at Wanshan and Liu Mian's at Shihui both hung back and refused to push forward. When the Emperor received Xiong's report of victory, he was overjoyed. In winter, the tenth month, on gengshen, the Emperor held court and told his chancellors, "Xiong is a true commander! Li Deyu added, "Some years ago in Luzhou city, a man bowed low and sang aloud, 'Shi Xiong's seven thousand men have come! Liu Congjian took this for sorcerous prophecy and had the man executed. The man who will take Luzhou is surely Xiong. An edict granted Xiong a special award of silk. He piled it all at the camp gate, took one bolt for himself on the same terms as an ordinary soldier, and divided the rest among his officers and men. From then on, his troops were eager to die in his service.
49
初，劉沔破回鶻，得太和公主，張仲武疾之，由是有隙； 上使李回至幽州和解之，仲武意終不平。 朝廷恐其以私憾敗事，辛未，徙沔為義成節度使，以前荊南節度使李石為河東節度使。
Earlier, after Liu Mian defeated the Uyghurs and recovered Princess Taihe, Zhang Zhongwu resented him, and bad blood grew between them. The Emperor sent Li Hui to You Prefecture to mediate, but Zhongwu's resentment never truly subsided. Fearing that private grudges would wreck the campaign, the court on xinwei transferred Mian to Yicheng and appointed the former Jingnan governor Li Shi as Military Governor of Hedong.
50
党項寇鹽州，以前武寧節度使李彥佐為朔方靈鹽節度使。 十一月，邠寧奏党項入寇。 李德裕奏：「党項愈熾，不可不為區處。 聞党項分隸諸鎮，剽掠於此則亡逃歸彼。 節度使各利其駝馬，不為擒送，以此無由禁戢。 臣屢奏不若使一鎮統之，陛下以為一鎮專領党項權太重。 臣今請以皇子兼統諸道，擇中朝廉干之臣為之副，居於夏州，理其辭訟，庶為得宜。」 乃以兗王岐為靈、夏等六道元帥兼安撫党項大使，又以御史中丞李回為安撫党項副使，史館修撰鄭亞為元帥判官，令繼詔往安撫党項及六鎮百姓。
When the Tangut raided Yan Prefecture, the former Wuning governor Li Yanzuo was appointed Military Governor of Shuofang, Ling, and Yan. In the eleventh month, Binning reported Tangut raids. Li Deyu submitted a memorial: "The Tangut threat grows fiercer by the day. We cannot leave it unaddressed. I understand that the Tangut bands are scattered among the various commands. When they raid one district, they flee into another. Each governor profits from the loot—especially camels and horses—and refuses to arrest and hand over the raiders. That is why the raids cannot be stopped. I have repeatedly urged that a single command be put in charge, but Your Majesty felt that giving one governor sole authority over the Tangut would concentrate too much power. I now propose that an imperial prince be placed in overall command, with a capable and upright official from the capital as his deputy stationed at Xia Prefecture to adjudicate disputes. That, I believe, would be the proper arrangement. Accordingly, Prince Qi of Yan was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the six Ling-Xia circuits and Grand Commissioner for Pacifying the Tangut. Censor-in-Chief Li Hui became his deputy, Historiographer Zheng Ya his chief aide, and the three were dispatched to pacify the Tangut and the people of the six frontier commands.
51
安南經略使武渾役將士治城，將士作亂，燒城樓，劫府庫。 渾奔廣州，監軍段士則撫安亂眾。
In Annam, Frontier Commissioner Wu Hun forced his troops to work on the city walls. They mutinied, burned the gate towers, and looted the government stores. Hun fled to Guang Prefecture while army supervisor Duan Shize calmed the mutineers.
52
忠武軍素號精勇，王宰治軍嚴整，昭義人甚憚之。 薛茂卿以科斗寨之功，意望超遷。 或謂劉稹曰：「留後所求者節耳。 茂卿太深入，多殺官軍，激怒朝廷，此節所以來益遲也。」 由是無賞。 茂卿溫懟，密與王宰通謀。 十一月，丁巳，宰引兵攻天井關，茂卿小戰，遽引兵走，宰遂克天井關守之。 關東西寨聞茂卿不守，皆退走，宰遂焚大小箕村。 茂卿入澤州，密使諜召宰進攻澤州，當為內應。 宰疑，不敢進，失期不至，茂卿拊膺頓足而已。 稹知之，誘茂卿至潞州，殺之，並其族，以兵馬使劉公直代茂卿，安全慶守烏嶺，李佐堯守雕黃嶺，郭僚守石會，康良佺守武鄉。 僚，誼之侄也。 戊辰，王宰進攻澤州，與劉公直戰，不利，公直乘勝復天井關。 甲戌，宰進擊公直，大破之，遂圍陵川，克之。 河東奏克石會關。 洺州刺史李恬，石之從兄也。 石至太原，劉稹遣軍將賈群詣石，以恬書與石云：「稹願舉族歸命相公，奉從諫喪歸葬東都。」 石囚群，以其書聞。 李德裕上言：「今官軍四合，捷書日至，賊勢窮蹙，故偽輸誠款，翼以緩師，稍得自完，復來侵軼。 望詔石答恬書云：『前書未敢聞奏。 若郎君誠能悔過，舉族面縛，待罪境上，則石當親往受降，護送歸闕。 若虛為誠款，先求解兵，次望洗雪，則石必不敢以百口保人。』 仍望招諸道，乘其上下離心，速進兵攻討，不過旬朔，必內自生變。」 上從之。 右拾遺崔碣上疏請受其降，上怒，貶碣鄧城令。
The Zhongwu army had long been renowned for its fighting spirit, and Wang Zai ran a tight camp. The people of Zhaoyi feared him deeply. Because of his victory at Kedou Stockade, Xue Maoqing expected a swift and exceptional promotion. Someone said to Liu Zhen, "All the acting governor wants is a commission of his own. But Maoqing pushed too far, killed too many imperial troops, and enraged the court. That is why the commission keeps being delayed. For that reason, no reward was given. Burning with resentment, Maoqing secretly opened negotiations with Wang Zai. In the eleventh month, on dingsi, Zai attacked Tianjing Pass. Maoqing offered only a brief resistance, then pulled back. Zai took the pass and garrisoned it. When the stockades east and west of the pass learned that Maoqing would not stand firm, they all abandoned their positions. Zai then burned the villages of Daji and Xiaoji. Maoqing withdrew into Ze Prefecture and secretly sent a spy urging Zai to attack the city, promising to serve as his inside ally. Zai hesitated and would not advance. He missed the agreed time, and Maoqing could only wring his hands in frustration. When Zhen learned of the plot, he lured Maoqing to Luzhou, killed him, and wiped out his clan. He replaced Maoqing with Cavalry Commissioner Liu Gongzhi, posted An Qingqing at Wuling Pass, Li Zuoyao at Diaohuang Ridge, Guo Liao at Shihui, and Kang Liangquan at Wuxiang. Liao was a nephew of Guo Yi. On wuchen, Wang Zai attacked Ze Prefecture and fought Liu Gongzhi without success. Gongzhi pressed his advantage and retook Tianjing Pass. On jiaxu, Zai attacked Gongzhi again and routed him, then besieged and captured Lingchuan. Hedong reported the capture of Shihui Pass. Li Tian, Prefect of Ming, was Li Shi's elder cousin. When Li Shi reached Taiyuan, Liu Zhen sent the officer Jia Qun with a letter from Li Tian. It read, "Zhen is willing to surrender his whole clan to you, Commissioner, and to send Congjian's coffin home for burial in the Eastern Capital. Li Shi imprisoned Jia Qun and forwarded the letter to the throne. Li Deyu advised the throne: "The imperial armies now close in from every side and victory reports arrive daily. The rebels are desperate, and this supposed offer of surrender is a sham meant to slow our advance. Once they recover, they will raid again. I ask that Shi be instructed to answer Li Tian's letter as follows: 'I did not dare report your earlier letter to the throne. If you truly repent and come forward with your whole clan in bonds to await judgment at the frontier, I will go in person to accept your surrender and escort you to the capital. But if this is a false show of loyalty—first asking us to halt the campaign, then hoping to be cleared of guilt—I cannot stake the lives of my entire household on your word. I also urge that all circuits be ordered to press the attack while the rebels are divided within. If we move quickly, within ten days or a month they will turn on one another. The Emperor agreed. Right Reminder Cui Jie memorialized the throne urging acceptance of the surrender. The Emperor was furious and demoted him to magistrate of Dengcheng.
53
初，劉沔破回鶻，留兵三千戍橫水柵。 河東行營都知兵馬使王逢奏乞益榆社兵，詔河東以兵二千赴之。 時河東無兵，守倉庫者及工匠皆出從軍，李石召橫水戍卒千五百人，使都將楊弁將之詣逢，壬午，戍卒至太原。 先是，軍士出征，人給絹二匹。 劉沔之去，竭府庫自隨，石初至，軍用乏，以己絹益之，人才得一匹。 時已歲盡，軍士求過正旦而行，監軍呂義忠累牒趣之。 楊弁因眾心之怒，又知城中空虛，遂作亂。
Earlier, after Liu Mian defeated the Uyghurs, he had left three thousand men to garrison Hengshui Stockade. Wang Feng, Hedong Forward-Camp Director of Military Affairs, asked for reinforcements at Yushe. An edict ordered Hedong to dispatch two thousand men. Hedong had no spare troops. Even warehouse guards and artisans were sent to the front. Li Shi called up fifteen hundred men from the Hengshui garrison and put Commandant Yang Bian in charge of escorting them to Wang Feng. On renwu they reached Taiyuan. Previously, each soldier sent on campaign had been given two bolts of silk. When Liu Mian left, he had drained the treasury and taken everything with him. Li Shi had just arrived to find the coffers empty. He added silk from his own funds, but each man received only one bolt. The year was nearly over, and the men asked to wait until after New Year's Day before marching. Army supervisor Lü Yizhong sent dispatch after dispatch ordering them to move at once. Yang Bian seized on the men's anger, and knowing the city was nearly undefended, he led a mutiny.
54
武宗至道昭肅孝皇帝中會昌四年（ 甲子，公元八四四年）
Middle reign of Emperor Wuzong, the Filial Emperor of Supreme Way and Solemn Clarity, fourth year of Huichang ( jiazi, corresponding to 844 CE)
55
春，正月，乙酉朔，楊弁帥其眾剽掠城市，殺都頭梁季葉，李石奔汾州。 弁據軍府，釋賈群之囚，使其侄與之俱詣劉稹，約為兄弟。 稹大喜。 石會關守將楊珍聞太原亂，復以關降於稹。
In spring, the first month, on the first day, yiyou, Yang Bian led his men in looting the city, killed Commandant Liang Jiye, and Li Shi fled to Fen Prefecture. Bian seized the military headquarters, freed Jia Qun from prison, and sent his nephew with Jia to Liu Zhen to swear brotherhood with him. Zhen was overjoyed. When Yang Zhen, commander of Shihui Pass, heard of the uprising in Taiyuan, he surrendered the pass to Zhen once more.
56
戊子，呂義忠遣使言狀，朝議喧然。 或言兩地皆應罷兵，王宰又上言：「游弈將得劉稹表，臣近遣人至澤潞，賊有意歸附。 若許招納，乞降詔命！」 李德裕上言：「宰擅受稹表，遣人入賊中，曾不聞奏，觀宰意似欲擅招撫之功。 昔韓信破田榮，李靖擒頡利，皆因其請降，潛兵掩襲。 止可令王宰失信，豈得損朝廷威命！ 建立奇功，實在今日，必不可以太原小擾，失此事機。 望即遣供奉官至行營，督其進兵，掩其無備，必須劉稹與諸將皆舉族面縛，方可受納。 兼遣供奉官至晉絳行營，密諭石雄以王宰若納劉稹，則雄無功可紀。 雄於垂成之際，須自取奇功，勿失此便。」 又為相府與宰書，言：「昔王承宗雖逆命，猶遣弟承恭奉表詣張相祈哀，又遣其子知感、知信入朝，憲宗猶未之許。 今劉稹不詣尚書面縛，又不遣血屬祈哀，置章表於衢路之間，游弈將不即毀除，實恐非是。 況稹與楊弁通姦，逆狀如此，而將帥大臣容受其詐，是私惠歸於臣下，不赦在於朝廷，事體之間，交恐不可。 自今更有章表，宣即所在焚之。 惟面縛而來，始可容受。」 德裕又上言：「太原人心從來忠順，止是貧虛，賞犒不足。 況千五百人何能為事！ 必不可姑息寬縱。 且用兵未罷，深慮所在動心。 頃張延賞為張朏出所逐，逃奔漢州，還入成都。 望詔李石、義忠還赴太原行營，召旁近之兵討除亂者。」 上皆從之。 是時，李石已至晉州，詔復還太原。 辛卯，詔王逢悉留太原兵守榆社，以易定千騎、宣武兗海步兵三千討楊弁； 又詔王元逵以步騎五千自土門入，應接逢軍。 忻州刺史李丕奏：「楊弁遣人來為遊說，臣已斬之，兼斷其北出之路，發兵討之。」 辛丑，上與宰相議太原事，李德裕曰：「今太原兵皆在外，為亂者止千餘人，諸州鎮必無應者。 計不日誅翦，惟應速詔王逢進軍，至城下必自有變。」 上曰：「仲武見鎮、魏討澤潞有功，必有慕羨之心，使之討太原何如？」 德裕對曰：「鎮州趣太原路最便近。 仲武去年討回鶻，與太原爭功，恐其不戢士卒，平人受害。」 乃止。
On wuzi, Lü Yizhong sent a messenger with a report of the disaster, and the court erupted in alarmed debate. Some argued that both fronts should stand down. Wang Zai also submitted a memorial: "A patrol officer has received a petition from Liu Zhen. I recently sent men into Ze and Lu, and the rebels seem willing to submit. If their surrender may be accepted, I beg Your Majesty to issue an edict! Li Deyu countered: "Zai accepted Zhen's petition on his own authority, sent men into rebel territory, and never reported it. He plainly wants to claim the credit for accepting their surrender himself. In the past, Han Xin destroyed Tian Rong and Li Jing captured Jieli Khan by pretending to accept surrender while secretly launching a surprise attack. We may let Wang Zai break his word if we must, but we cannot let the authority of the throne be diminished! The moment to win a decisive victory is now. We must not throw it away over a minor disturbance at Taiyuan. Send palace envoys at once to the forward camps to press the attack and strike while the enemy is off guard. Liu Zhen and his generals must come forward with their entire clans in bonds before we accept any surrender. Also send a palace envoy to the Jin- and Jiang-Ford Forward Camp with a secret message for Shi Xiong: if Wang Zai accepts Liu Zhen's surrender, Xiong will have no glory left to win. Victory is within reach. Xiong must seize a decisive triumph for himself now and not let this chance slip away. He also sent a letter from the chancellery to Zai: "Even when Wang Chengzong rebelled, he sent his brother Chenggong with a memorial pleading to Chancellor Zhang, and sent his sons Zhigan and Zhixin to court—and Emperor Xianzong still refused to accept their submission. Liu Zhen has not come to the Secretariat in bonds, nor sent close kin to plead for mercy. He simply leaves petitions in the public roads, and your patrol officer has not even destroyed them. This is hardly a genuine surrender. Worse, Zhen is in league with Yang Bian. His rebellion is flagrant, yet a field commander would accept this fraud. That would put private favor in the hands of a subordinate while mercy remained the court's alone. Such an arrangement is intolerable. From now on, any further petitions are to be burned wherever they are found. Only if they come forward in bonds will we accept their surrender. Li Deyu added another memorial: "The people of Taiyuan have always been loyal. They rebelled only because they were impoverished and poorly rewarded. Besides, what can fifteen hundred men really accomplish! We must not show them leniency. The campaign is not yet over, and I greatly fear that unrest elsewhere will be stirred up. Not long ago, Zhang Yanshang was driven out by Zhang Fei, fled to Han Prefecture, and then returned to Chengdu. I ask that Li Shi and Lü Yizhong be ordered back to the Taiyuan forward camp and that nearby troops be summoned to crush the mutineers. The emperor approved every point. By then Li Shi had already reached Jin Prefecture, but an edict ordered him to turn back to Taiyuan. On the day xinmao, Wang Feng was ordered to leave every Taiyuan soldier at Yushe and to take one thousand Yiding cavalry plus three thousand Xuanwu and Yanhai infantry against Yang Bian; Wang Yuankui was also ordered to enter through Tumen with five thousand infantry and cavalry to reinforce Feng's force. Li Pi, prefect of Xin, reported, "Yang Bian sent envoys to win me over. I have executed them, cut off his escape route to the north, and raised troops to attack him." On xinchou the emperor met with his chief ministers on Taiyuan. Li Deyu said, "Taiyuan's regular troops are all away. The mutineers number barely a thousand, and no other prefecture or garrison will rally to them. They can be crushed within days. We need only order Wang Feng to march at once; once he reaches the city walls, the situation will turn of its own accord." The emperor said, "Zhongwu watched Zhen and Wei win glory against Zelu and must envy them. What if we sent him against Taiyuan?" Li Deyu replied, "The road from Zhen Prefecture to Taiyuan is the shortest and easiest. Last year, when Zhongwu fought the Uyghurs, he quarreled with Taiyuan over credit for the victory. I fear he will not restrain his men, and civilians will pay the price." The proposal was dropped.
57
上遣中使馬元實至太原，曉諭亂兵，且覘其強弱。 陳弁與之酣飲三日，且賂之。 戊申，元實自太原還，上遣詣宰相議之，元實於眾中大言：「相公須早與之節！」 李德裕曰：「何故？」 元實曰：「自牙門至柳子列十五里曳地光明甲，若之何取之！」 德裕曰：「李相正以太原無兵，故發橫水兵赴榆社。 庫中之甲盡在行營，弁何能遽致如此之眾乎？」 元實曰：「太原人勁悍，皆可為兵，弁召募所致耳。」 德裕曰：「召募須有貨財，李相止以欠軍士絹一匹，無從可得，故致此亂，弁何從得之？」 元實辭屈。 德裕曰：「從其有十五里光明甲，必須殺此賊！」 因奏稱：「楊弁微賊，決不可恕。 如國力不及，寧捨劉稹。」 河東兵戍榆社者聞朝廷令客軍取太原，恐妻孥為所屠滅，乃擁監軍呂義忠自取太原。 壬子，克之，生擒楊弁，盡誅亂卒。
The emperor sent the palace envoy Ma Yuanshi to Taiyuan to reason with the mutineers and scout their strength. Yang Bian wined and dined him for three days straight and bribed him as well. On wushen, Yuanshi returned from Taiyuan. The emperor sent him to consult the chief ministers, and Yuanshi declared before them all, "Your Excellencies must grant him a commission immediately!" Li Deyu asked, "Why?" Yuanshi said, "From the yamen gate to Liuzi, polished armor gleaming in the sun stretched for fifteen li along the road. How could you ever overcome them!" Li Deyu said, "Vice Director Li sent the Hengshui garrison to Yushe precisely because Taiyuan had no troops left. Every suit of armor in the arsenal is with the field army. How could Bian suddenly produce a force that size?" Yuanshi said, "The people of Taiyuan are tough and warlike. Bian simply recruited them—that is all." Li Deyu said, "Recruitment takes money and supplies. Vice Director Li owed each man a single bolt of silk and had no way to pay even that—that is what sparked this mutiny. Where would Bian get the funds?" Yuanshi had no reply. Li Deyu said, "Even if they truly had armor gleaming for fifteen li, we must kill this rebel!" He then memorialized, "Yang Bian is a petty rebel and must on no account be forgiven. If our strength is not equal to both tasks, better to let Liu Zhen go." The Hedong garrison at Yushe heard that the court had ordered outside armies to seize Taiyuan. Fearing their families would be massacred, they rallied around army supervisor Lü Yizhong and retook the city themselves. On renzi they took the city, captured Yang Bian alive, and executed every mutineer.
58
三月，甲寅朔，日有食之。
In the third month, on the first day of the month, jiayin, there was a solar eclipse.
59
乙卯，呂義忠奏克太原。 丙辰，李德裕言於上曰：「王宰久應取澤州，今已遷延兩月。 蓋宰與石雄素不葉，今得澤州，距上黨猶二百里； 而石雄所屯距上黨才百五十里。 宰恐攻澤州綴昭義大軍，而雄得乘虛入上黨獨有其功耳。 又宰生子晏實，其父智興愛而子之，晏實今為磁州刺史，為劉稹所質。 宰之顧望不敢進，或為此也。」 上命德裕草詔賜宰，督其進兵。 且曰：「朕顧茲小寇，終不貸刑。 亦知晏實是卿愛弟，將申大義，在抑私懷。」
On yimao, Lü Yizhong reported the capture of Taiyuan. On bingchen, Li Deyu told the emperor, "Wang Zai should have taken Ze Prefecture long ago, yet two months have already slipped by. The reason is that Zai and Shi Xiong have never been on good terms. Even if he took Ze Prefecture now, Shangdang would still lie two hundred li ahead; whereas Shi Xiong's camp is only one hundred fifty li from Shangdang. Zai fears that attacking Ze Prefecture will pin down the main Zhaoyi army, while Xiong slips in to take Shangdang alone and win all the glory. Moreover, Zai had raised Yan Shi as a son—Zhi Xing loved the boy as his own—and Yan Shi now serves as prefect of Ci while Liu Zhen holds him hostage. Zai's hesitation to advance may stem from this." The emperor ordered Li Deyu to draft an edict for Wang Zai pressing him to march. He added, "This petty rebel is within my sight, and I will never spare him punishment. I know Yan Shi is your beloved brother, but you must uphold the greater duty and set private feeling aside."
60
丁巳，以李石為太子少傅、分司，以河中節度使崔元式為河東節度使，石雄為河中節度使。 元式，元略之弟也。
On dingsi, Li Shi was made Junior Tutor to the Heir Apparent with a nominal post at court; Cui Yuanshi, military commissioner of Hezhong, was transferred to Hedong; and Shi Xiong was made military commissioner of Hezhong. Yuanshi was the younger brother of Yuanlue.
61
乙未，石雄拔良馬等三寨一堡。
On yiwei, Shi Xiong stormed three stockades and one fort, including Liangma.
62
辛酉，太原獻楊弁及其黨五十四人，皆斬於狗脊嶺。
On xinyou, Taiyuan sent Yang Bian and fifty-four of his accomplices to the capital; all were beheaded at Goujiling.
63
壬申，李德裕言於上曰：「事固有激發而成功者：陛下命王宰趣磁州，而何弘敬出師； 遣客軍討太原，而戍兵先取楊弁。 今王宰久不進軍，請徙劉沔鎮河陽，仍令以義成精兵二千直抵萬善，處宰肘腋之下。 若宰識朝廷此意，必不敢淹留。 若宰進軍，沔以重兵在南，聲勢亦壯。」 上曰：「善！」 戊寅，以義成節度使劉沔為河陽節度使。
On renshen, Li Deyu told the emperor, "Some campaigns succeed only because one move provokes another: when Your Majesty ordered Wang Zai toward Ci Prefecture, He Hongjing marched out his army; when you sent outside armies against Taiyuan, the garrison troops captured Yang Bian first. Wang Zai has stalled for too long. I ask that Liu Mian be posted to Heyang and ordered to take two thousand elite Yicheng troops straight to Wanshan, placing a force at Zai's flank. If Zai reads the court's intent, he will not dare linger. If Zai does advance, Mian's heavy force to the south will strengthen the overall position. The emperor said, "Excellent!" On wuyin, Liu Mian, military commissioner of Yicheng, was made military commissioner of Heyang.
64
王逢擊昭義將康良佺，敗之。 良佺棄石會關，退屯鼓腰嶺。
Wang Feng attacked the Zhaoyi general Kang Liangquan and routed him. Liangquan abandoned Shihui Pass and fell back to Guyaoling.
65
黠戛斯遣將軍諦德伊斯難珠等入貢，言欲徙居回鶻牙帳，請發兵之期，集會之地。 上賜詔，諭以「今秋可汗擊回鶻、黑車子之時，當令幽州、太原、振武、天德四鎮出兵要路，邀其亡逸，便申冊命，並依回鶻故事。」 朝廷以回鶻衰微，吐蕃內亂，議復河、湟四鎮十八州。 乃以給事中劉水蒙為巡邊使，使之先備器械糗糧及詗吐蕃守兵眾寡。 又令天德、振武、河東訓卒礪兵，以俟今秋黠越斯擊回鶻，邀其潰敗之眾南來者，皆委水蒙與節度團練使詳議以聞。 水蒙，晏之孫也。
The Kirghiz sent Generals Dide Yisinanzhu and others to court with tribute, saying they wished to move into the former Uyghur royal encampment and asking when Tang would send troops and where they should rendezvous. The emperor replied by edict that when the khan attacked the Uyghurs and Heichezi that autumn, Youzhou, Taiyuan, Zhenwu, and Tiande should send troops to hold the key routes and cut off fugitives; formal investiture would then follow, on the Uyghur model. With the Uyghurs in decline and Tibet convulsed by civil war, the court debated recovering the four garrisons and eighteen prefectures of the Hexi region. Liu Shuimeng, a supervising secretary, was made frontier inspector to stock weapons and provisions and to scout the size of Tibetan garrisons. Tiande, Zhenwu, and Hedong were also ordered to drill troops and sharpen weapons against the day the Kirghiz struck the Uyghurs that autumn and routed fugitives fled south. Shuimeng and the military commissioners were to work out the details and report back. Shuimeng was a grandson of Liu Yan.
66
以道士趙歸真為右街道門教授先生。
The Daoist Zhao Guizhen was appointed Professor and Master of the Right Street Gate.
67
吐蕃論恐熱之將岌藏豐贊惡恐熱殘忍，降於尚婢婢。 恐熱發兵擊婢婢於鄯州，婢婢分兵為五道拒之。 恐熱退保東谷，婢婢為木柵圍之，絕其水原。 恐熱將百餘騎突圍走保薄寒山，餘眾皆降於婢婢。
Jizang Fengzan, a general under the Tibetan warlord Lun Qiner, revolted against Qiner's cruelty and surrendered to Shang Bibi. Qiner marched against Bibi at Shan Prefecture; Bibi split her army into five columns to meet him. Qiner fell back to Dong Valley; Bibi ringed him with wooden palisades and cut off his water. Qiner broke out with barely a hundred riders and fled to Bo Han Mountain; the rest of his army surrendered to Bibi.
68
夏，四月，王宰進攻澤州。
In summer, the fourth month, Wang Zai launched an assault on Ze Prefecture.
69
上好神仙，道士趙歸真得幸，諫官屢以為言。 丙子，李德裕亦諫曰：「歸真，敬宗朝罪人，不宜親近！」 上曰：「朕宮中無事時與之談道滌煩耳。 至於政事，朕必問卿等與次對官，雖百歸真不能惑也。」 德裕曰：「小人見勢利所在，則奔趣之，如夜蛾之投燭。 聞旬日以來，歸真之門，車馬輻湊，願陛下深戒之！」
The emperor dabbled in immortality cults, and the Daoist Zhao Guizhen won his favor. Censorial officials remonstrated again and again. On bingzi, Li Deyu remonstrated as well: "Guizhen is a convicted criminal from Jingzong's reign and should not be kept near the throne!" The emperor said, "When I have idle hours in the palace I talk Dao with him to clear my mind—that is all. On state affairs I always consult you and the duty officers. A hundred Zhao Guizhens could not sway me." Li Deyu said, "Petty men chase wherever profit and power lead, like moths darting into a flame at night. For ten days now I have heard that carriages and horses crowd Guizhen's gate. I beg Your Majesty to take this warning to heart!"
70
戊寅，以左僕射王起同平章事，充山南西道節度使。 起以文臣未嘗執政，直除使相，前無此比，固辭。 上曰：「宰相無內外之異，朕有闕失，卿飛表以聞！」
On wuyin, Wang Qi, Left Vice Director of the Department of State Affairs, was made Grand Councilor and military commissioner of the Western Mountain-North Circuit. Qi, a civil scholar who had never held executive office, was being made military commissioner and chief minister in one step—a thing without precedent—and he firmly declined. The emperor said, "A chief minister knows no boundary between court and province. If I err, send an urgent memorial at once!"
71
李德裕以州縣佐官太冗，奏令吏部郎中柳仲郢裁減。 六月，仲郢奏減一千二百一十四員。 仲郢，公綽之子也。
Li Deyu, finding county and prefecture aide posts far too numerous, memorialized that Liu Zhongying of the Ministry of Personnel be ordered to cut them back. In the sixth month, Zhongying reported a cut of 1,214 posts. Zhongying was the son of Liu Gongchuo.
72
宦官有發仇士良宿惡，於其家得兵仗數千。 詔削其官爵，籍沒家貲。
Eunuchs exposed Qiu Shiliang's old crimes and found several thousand weapons in his house. An edict stripped him of rank and title and confiscated his estate.
73
秋，七月，辛卯，上與李德裕議以王逢將兵屯翼城，上曰：「聞逢用法太嚴，有諸？」 對曰：「臣亦嘗以此詰之，逢言：『前有白刃，法不嚴，其誰肯進？』」 上曰：「言亦有理，卿更召而戒之！」 德裕因言劉稹不可赦。 上曰：「固然。」 德裕曰：「昔李懷光未平，京師蝗旱，米斗千錢，太倉米供天子及六宮無數旬之儲。 德宗集百官，遣中使馬欽緒詢之。 左散騎常侍李泌取桐葉摶破，以授欽緒獻之。 德宗召問其故，對曰：『陛下與懷光君臣之分，如此葉不可復合矣！』 由是德宗意定。 既破懷光，遂用為相，獨任數年。」 上曰：「亦大是奇士！」
In autumn, the seventh month, on xinmao, the emperor discussed with Li Deyu Wang Feng's posting at Yicheng. He asked, "I hear Feng enforces discipline too harshly—is that true?" Li Deyu replied, "I questioned him myself. Feng said, 'With naked blades in front of us, if discipline is lax, who will dare advance?' The emperor said, "There is sense in that. Summon him again and counsel restraint!" Li Deyu then said Liu Zhen must not be pardoned. The emperor said, "Of course." Li Deyu said, "Before Li Huai'guang was crushed, locusts and drought struck the capital. Rice cost a thousand cash per dou, and the Grand Storehouse could not feed the emperor and the inner palaces for many weeks. Emperor Dezong gathered the officials and sent the palace envoy Ma Qinxu to ask their counsel. Li Bi, Left Regular Palace Attendant, tore a paulownia leaf in two and gave the pieces to Qinxu to present. Dezong summoned him and asked why. Li Bi answered, "The bond between Your Majesty and Huai'guang as sovereign and subject is like this leaf—it can never be made whole again!" From that moment Dezong's resolve was firm. After Huai'guang fell, Li Bi was made chief minister and held sole trust for years." The emperor said, "He was a remarkable man indeed!"
74
上聞揚州倡女善為酒令，敕淮南監軍選十七人獻之。 監軍請節度使杜悰同選，且欲更擇良家美女，教而獻之。 悰曰：「監軍自受敕，悰不敢預聞！」 監軍再三請之，不從。 監軍怒，具表其狀，上覽表默然。 左右請並敕節度使同選，上曰：「敕籓方選倡女入宮，豈聖天子所為！ 杜悰不徇監軍意，得大臣體，真宰相才也。 朕甚愧之！」 遽敕監軍勿復選。 甲辰，以悰同平章事，兼度支、鹽鐵轉過使。 及悰中謝，上勞之曰：「卿不從監軍之言，朕知卿有致君之心，今相卿，如得一魏徵矣！」」
The emperor heard that courtesans in Yangzhou were skilled at drinking games and ordered the Huainan army supervisor to select seventeen and send them to court. The supervisor asked Military Commissioner Du Cong to help choose them and proposed selecting respectable beauties as well, training them, and presenting those too. Du Cong said, "The supervisor received the edict on his own authority—I dare not take part!" The supervisor pressed him again and again; Du Cong refused. The supervisor grew angry and submitted a full report. The emperor read it and said nothing. Those around him suggested ordering the military commissioner to join the selection. The emperor said, "Ordering a frontier province to send courtesans to the palace—is that what a sage Son of Heaven does! Du Cong refused to bend to the army supervisor and showed the bearing of a true minister. He has the makings of a chief minister. I am deeply ashamed!" He immediately ordered the army supervisor to stop the selection. On the day jiachen, Du Cong was made Grand Councilor and concurrently Commissioner for Revenue, Salt Iron, and Transport. When Du Cong came to court to express thanks, the emperor praised him, saying, "You refused the supervisor's request—I know you have the heart to serve your ruler. Making you chief minister now is like gaining a Wei Zheng!"”