Xu Ci

Last updated

Xu Ci (fl. third century), courtesy name Rendu, was an official and scholar of the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms period of China. [1] [2] An outsider to the province, he and Hu Qian's disorderly conduct would hamper a scholarly project and see his superior put on a play mocking the poor conduct of those involved.

Contents

Life

Xu Ci was from Nanyang Commandery (南陽郡), which is around present-day Nanyang, Henan. He was born sometime in the late Eastern Han dynasty and had studied under the tutelage of Liu Xi (劉熈). He specialised in the teachings of the Confucian scholar Zheng Xuan, the Yijing , Book of Documents , Etiquette and Ceremonial , Book of Rites , Rites of Zhou , Mao Commentary and Analects of Confucius . Sometime between 196 and 220, he met Xu Jing and others in Jiao Province (covering parts of present-day Guangxi, Guangdong and northern Vietnam) and later accompanied them to Yi Province (covering present-day Sichuan and Chongqing). [3]

At the time, among the non-native scholars living in Yi Province, there was one Hu Qian (胡潛), whose courtesy name was Gongxing (公興). Nobody knew why he left his home in Wei Commandery (魏郡; around present-day Handan, Hebei) and travelled all the way to Yi Province. While Hu Qian was not as well-read and knowledgeable as the others, he was intelligent and had a very good memory. He memorised and knew by heart everything about Confucian rites, rituals, procedures, protocol, etc., ranging from ancestral worship to the five types of mourning attire. [4] [lower-alpha 1]

In 214, [6] after the warlord Liu Bei seized control of Yi Province from its governor, Liu Zhang, he saw that Confucian customs and education in the province were very disorderly due to years of neglect. He wanted to revive Confucianism in Yi Province and establish a set of rituals and procedures for the region, so he set up an education office to oversee this project. Apart from building up a library of Confucian texts, Liu Bei also appointed Xu Ci and Hu Qian as academicians (博士), serving at the academy, [7] and ordered them to work with other scholars such as Meng Guang and Lai Min on this project. [8]

While the project was still in its initial stage of development, bitter disagreements and quarrels broke out among the scholars due to differences in opinion. Xu Ci and Hu Qian started making accusations and taking petty revenge against each other including withholding books. They bickered among themselves and constantly sought opportunities to provoke each other. They also praised themselves and scorned their colleagues. [9] When Liu Bei heard about it, he came up with an idea to urge them to put aside their differences and cooperate with each other. He gathered all the officials for a feast and had actors put on a skit parodying the conflict between Xu Ci and Hu Qian, showing how a war of words between them led to them using weapons to attack each other. [10] Despite Liu Bei's efforts, the project ultimately turned out to be a failure. [1]

Hu Qian died before Xu Ci in an unknown year. Following the end of the Eastern Han dynasty in 220, Xu Ci was consulted by officials on the proper rites for establishing an Emperor, [11] served in the state of Shu Han, founded by Liu Bei in 221, during the Three Kingdoms period. After Liu Bei's death in 223, [12] Xu Ci continued serving under Liu Shan, Liu Bei's son and successor. During Liu Shan's reign, he held the appointment of Empress's Chamberlain (大長秋). He died in an unknown year. [13]

Xu Ci's son, Xu Xun (許勛), inherited his father's legacy and served as an academician (博士) in Shu. [14]

Appraisal

Chen Shou noted Xu Ci had broad knowledge and experience, a learned man of his age [15] while the Jin historian and critic Sun Sheng remarked, such men being hired by Liu Bei reflected the lack of scholars in Shu-Han. [16] J. Michael Farmer notes Chen Shou focused on their characters rather than their intellectual contributions, using a humorous story to highlight their pettiness. Chen Shou also used Xu Ci and Hu Qian to assert the supremacy of his local intellectual tradition over that of outside scholars from the Central Plains. He also used Xu Ci and Hu Qian to show the poor state of intellectual affairs in the early years of Shu Han with the concern of Liu Bei about it. [17] In the debate on the way Zheng Xuan's work gained influence in the Chengdu area, Yoshikawa Tadao argues Xu Ci played a key role in bringing its influence to the province. [7]

See also

Notes

  1. The historian Sun Sheng pointed out that Chen Shou embedded Hu Qian's biography in Xu Ci's biography in the Records of the Three Kingdoms because there were too few notable scholars in Shu (and too little information about them), [5] so it did not make sense to have individual biographies for all of them.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guan Yu</span> Chinese general serving warlord Liu Bei (160–220)

Guan Yu, courtesy name Yunchang, was a Chinese military general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Along with Zhang Fei, he shared a brotherly relationship with Liu Bei and accompanied him on most of his early exploits. Guan Yu played a significant role in the events leading up to the end of the Han dynasty and the establishment of Liu Bei's state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period. While he is remembered for his loyalty towards Liu Bei, he is also known for repaying Cao Cao's kindness by slaying Yan Liang, a general under Cao Cao's rival Yuan Shao, at the Battle of Boma. After Liu Bei gained control of Yi Province in 214, Guan Yu remained in Jing Province to govern and defend the area for about seven years. In 219, while he was away fighting Cao Cao's forces at the Battle of Fancheng, Liu Bei's ally Sun Quan broke the Sun–Liu alliance and sent his general Lü Meng to conquer Liu Bei's territories in Jing Province. By the time Guan Yu found out about the loss of Jing Province after his defeat at Fancheng, it was too late. He was subsequently captured in an ambush by Sun Quan's forces and executed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liu Bei</span> Chinese warlord and founding Emperor of Shu Han (161–223)

Liu Bei, courtesy name Xuande (玄德), was a Chinese warlord in the late Eastern Han dynasty who later became the founding emperor of Shu Han, one of the Three Kingdoms of China. Although he was a distant relative of the Han imperial family, Liu Bei's father died when he was a child and left his family impoverished. To help his mother, he sold shoes and straw mats. When he reached the age of fifteen, his mother sent him to study under Lu Zhi. In his youth, Liu Bei was known as ambitious and charismatic. He gathered a militia army to fight the Yellow Turbans. Liu Bei fought bravely in many battles and grew famous for his exploits. Later, he participated in the coalition against Dong Zhuo, following this joined his childhood friend Gongsun Zan and fought under him against Yuan Shao.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zhang Fei</span> Chinese military general (died 221)

Zhang Fei, courtesy name Yide, was a Chinese military general and politician serving under the warlord Liu Bei in the late Eastern Han dynasty and early Three Kingdoms period of China. Zhang Fei and Guan Yu, who were among the earliest to join Liu Bei, shared a brotherly relationship with their lord and accompanied him on most of his early exploits. Zhang Fei fought in various battles on Liu Bei's side, including the Red Cliffs campaign (208–209), takeover of Yi Province (212–214), and Hanzhong Campaign (217–218). He was assassinated by his subordinates in 221 after serving for only a few months in the state of Shu Han, which was founded by Liu Bei earlier that year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taishi Ci</span> Eastern Han Dynasty general (166–206)

Taishi Ci (166–206), courtesy name Ziyi, was a Chinese military general who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He had served as a minor Han official, before eventually coming to serve warlords Liu Yao, Sun Ce, and Sun Ce's successor Sun Quan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Xu Shu</span> 3rd century Chinese state of Cao Wei official

Xu Shu, courtesy name Yuanzhi, originally named Xu Fu, was a Chinese politician of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was born in the late Eastern Han dynasty and used to be a vigilante swordsman in his early life. However, after running into trouble with the authorities, he renounced his old ways and took up scholarly pursuits. He lived a reclusive life from the 190s to mid-200s in Jing Province, where he met and befriended Zhuge Liang. In late 207, he became an adviser to the warlord Liu Bei and served under Liu for about a year. He also recommended Zhuge Liang to Liu Bei during this period of time. In late 208, Liu Bei was defeated at the Battle of Changban by his rival Cao Cao. Xu Shu's mother was captured by Cao Cao's forces during the battle. Feeling lost and without a sense of direction, Xu Shu eventually left Liu Bei and joined Cao Cao. He continued serving in the state of Cao Wei – founded by Cao Cao's son and successor, Cao Pi, who ended the Eastern Han dynasty – and died of illness in office.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chen Shou</span> Chinese historian (233-297)

Chen Shou, courtesy name Chengzuo (承祚), was a Chinese historian, politician, and writer who lived during the Three Kingdoms period and Jin dynasty of China. Chen Shou is most known for his most celebrated work, the Records of the Three Kingdoms (Sanguozhi), which records the history of the late Eastern Han dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period. Chen Shou wrote the Sanguozhi primarily in the form of biographies of notable persons of those eras. Today, Chen's Records of the Three Kingdoms is part of the Twenty-Four Histories canon of ancient Chinese history.

Zhang Yi, courtesy name Junsi, was an official of the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms period of China.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fei Yi</span> Shu Han state regent and general (died 253)

Fei Yi, courtesy name Wenwei, was a Chinese diplomat, military general, politician, and regent of the state of Shu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Born in the late Eastern Han dynasty, Fei Yi started his career as an attendant to Liu Shan, the eldest son and heir apparent of Liu Bei, a warlord who became the founding emperor of Shu. After Liu Shan became emperor in 223, Fei Yi gradually rose to prominence under the regency of Zhuge Liang, the Imperial Chancellor of Shu. During this time, he concurrently served as a military adviser under Zhuge Liang and as Shu's ambassador to its ally state Wu. He also played a significant role in the conflict between the Shu general Wei Yan and Zhuge Liang's chief clerk Yang Yi. After Zhuge Liang's death in 234, Fei Yi served as a deputy to the new regent Jiang Wan and progressively assumed greater responsibilities as Jiang Wan gradually relinquished his powers due to poor health. In 244, Fei Yi led Shu forces to victory at the Battle of Xingshi against their rival state Wei and succeeded Jiang Wan as regent of Shu two years later following the latter's death. On the first day of the Chinese New Year in 253, Fei Yi was assassinated by a Wei defector, Guo Xiu.

Huang Quan, courtesy name Gongheng, was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He previously served under the warlords Liu Zhang and Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han dynasty and in the state of Shu Han during the early Three Kingdoms period before defecting to Cao Wei. Liu Bei relied heavily on Huang Quan for counsel in both domestic and foreign policy. Under the Wei government, however, Huang Quan was restricted to only internal affairs because even though the Wei emperor Cao Pi appreciated him for his talent, he doubted Huang Quan's allegiance and believed he was still secretly loyal to Liu Bei.

Chen Deng, courtesy name Yuanlong, was a Chinese military general and politician who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Born in a family of government officials in Xu Province, he started his career as a county chief at the age of 24 and later became an agriculture official under Tao Qian, the Governor of Xu Province. After Tao Qian's death in 194, Chen Deng supported Liu Bei to be the new Governor. However, in 196, he was forced to become a subordinate of the warlord Lü Bu after the latter seized control of Xu Province from Liu Bei. During this time, Chen Deng and his father Chen Gui pretended to be loyal towards Lü Bu, while secretly undermining his influence by dissuading him from allying with another warlord Yuan Shu. Chen Deng also secretly agreed to serve as a mole in Xu Province for the warlord Cao Cao, who controlled the Han central government. Chen Deng was then appointed as the Administrator of Guangling Commandery. During the Battle of Xiapi of 198–199, Chen Deng led his troops to join Cao Cao and assisted him in defeating Lü Bu. After the victory, Chen Deng was given an additional appointment as General Who Calms the Waves. During his tenure in Guangling Commandery, he gained high popularity among the people for good and benevolent governance – to the point where the people even wanted to follow him after learning that he had been reassigned to another commandery. He also resisted two invasions by the forces of Sun Ce, a warlord who controlled territories in the Jiangnan region. He died in an unknown year at the age of 38 due to an illness caused by intestinal parasites.

Xiang Lang (160s-247), courtesy name Juda, was an official and scholar of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He previously served under the warlords Liu Biao and Liu Bei in the late Eastern Han dynasty. In 243, Xiang Lang resigned and spent the remaining years of his life reading, writing, proofreading and editing various classical texts. By the time of his death in 247, he was one of the foremost book collectors of his time and a major source of influence for many later scholars. He was an uncle of the Shu general Xiang Chong.

Zhang Miao, courtesy name Mengzhuo, was a Chinese politician and warlord who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China.

Yin Mo, courtesy name Siqian, was a Confucian scholar and official of the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms period of China.

Du Wei, courtesy name Guofu, was a scholar who rejected service, including via faking of poor health, before eventually becoming an official of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period of China.

Lai Min, courtesy name Jingda, was an official and scholar of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period of China.

Meng Guang, courtesy name Xiaoyu, was an official and scholar of the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms period of China.

Zhou Qun, courtesy name Zhongzhi, was an official, astronomer and diviner who served under the warlords Liu Zhang and Liu Bei in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Two of his interpretations of comets are preserved in volumes 102–104 of the Book of the Later Han, presumably through quotation by Qiao Zhou.

Yang Xi, courtesy name Wenran, was an official of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He is best known for writing the Ji Han Fuchen Zan, a collection of praises of notable persons who served in the Shu Han state. Chen Shou, the third-century historian who wrote the Records of the Three Kingdoms (Sanguozhi), extensively quoted and annotated Yang Xi's collection.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yang Hong (Shu Han)</span> Shu Han politician (died 228)

Yang Hong, courtesy name Jixiu, was an official of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period of China.

She Yuan, courtesy name Wenxiong, was an official of the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms period of China. She Yuan was among the 11 recorded officers of Liu Bei who persuaded him to declare himself "King of Hanzhong" (漢中王).

References

  1. 1 2 de Crespigny (2007), p. 902.
  2. Farmer, J. Michael. The Talent of Shu: Qiao Zhou and the Intellectual World of Earl Medieval Sichuan. Albany: State University of New York Press. p. 26. ISBN   978-0-7914-7163-0.
  3. (許慈字仁篤,南陽人也。師事劉熈,善鄭氏學,治易、尚書、三禮、毛詩、論語。建安中,與許靖等俱自交州入蜀。) Sanguozhi vol. 42.
  4. (時又有魏郡胡潛,字公興,不知其所以在益土。潛雖學不沾洽,然卓犖彊識,祖宗制度之儀,喪紀五服之數,皆指掌畫地,舉手可采。) Sanguozhi vol. 42.
  5. (孫盛曰:蜀少人士,故慈、潛等並見載述。) Sun Sheng's annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 42.
  6. Zizhi Tongjian vol. 67.
  7. 1 2 Farmer, J. Michael. The Talent of Shu: Qiao Zhou and the Intellectual World of Earl Medieval Sichuan. Albany: State University of New York Press. p. 78. ISBN   978-0-7914-7163-0.
  8. (先主定蜀,承喪亂歷紀,學業衰廢,乃鳩合典籍,沙汰衆學,慈、潛並為博士,與孟光、來敏等典掌舊文。) Sanguozhi vol. 42.
  9. (值庶事草創,動多疑議,慈、潛更相克伐,謗讟忿爭,形於聲色;書籍有無,不相通借,時尋楚撻,以相震攇。其矜己妬彼,乃至於此。) Sanguozhi vol. 42.
  10. (先主愍其若斯,羣僚大會,使倡家假為二子之容。傚其訟䦧之狀,酒酣樂作,以為嬉戲,初以辭義相難,終以刀杖相屈,用感切之。) Sanguozhi vol. 42.
  11. Sanguozhi vol.32.
  12. Zizhi Tongjian vols. 69–70.
  13. (潛先沒,慈後主世稍遷至大長秋,卒。) Sanguozhi vol. 42.
  14. (子勛傳其業,復為博士。) Sanguozhi vol. 42.
  15. 許、孟、來、李,博涉多聞,尹默精于左氏,雖不以德業為稱,信皆一時之學士 Sanguozhi vol.42.
  16. 蜀少人士,故慈、潛等並見載述。 Annotation in Sanguozhi vol.42
  17. Farmer, J. Michael. The Talent of Shu: Qiao Zhou and the Intellectual World of Earl Medieval Sichuan. Albany: State University of New York Press. pp. 25–27. ISBN   978-0-7914-7163-0.
Xu Ci
許慈
Empress's Chamberlain (大長秋)
In office
? (?)–? (?)