Comprehensive Reflections to Aid in Governance
By Sima Guang
Translated By Yiming Yang
Annals of Han Book 13 Scroll 21 (continued)
The 1st year of Emperor Wu’s Taichu Era (104 B.C.)
In October of winter, the Emperor journeyed to Mount Tai. On the 1st of November, during the morning of the winter solstice, the Emperor performed the worship of the Supreme Deity at the Temple of Heaven. The Emperor then proceeded to the eastern shores of the Gulf of Bohai, consulting occultists and those who had traveled overseas. However, no supernatural signs were found. Despite this, further attempts were made in the hope of encountering such signs.
On November 22, a fire broke out at the Bo’liang Terrace.
On December 1, the Emperor personally conducted the ritual of offering sacrifices to the Earth at Mount Gaoli, overlooking the Bohai Sea, with the intent of seeking divine signs related to Mount Penglai, hoping for extraordinary revelations.
In the spring, upon his return, and in light of the fire at Bo’liang Terrace, the Emperor held court with the feudal lords and received statistical reports at Ganquan Palace. The residences of the feudal lords were constructed at Ganquan.
A man named Yongzhi from Yue remarked, “In our Yue customs, when a fire disaster occurs and buildings are reconstructed, they must be grander to overcome the adversity.”
Heeding this counsel, the Emperor ordered the construction of the Jianzhang Palace, which was said to have a thousand doors and ten thousand windows. To the east stood the Fengque Tower, rising more than twenty zhang (about 10 ft per zhang) in height; to the west lay the Tangzhong Park, covering several dozen li and housing tiger enclosures. To the north, there was a vast pool, within which a terrace gradually ascended to over twenty zhang, named the Taiye Pool. Inside the pool were replicas of Mount Penglai, Mount Fangzhang, Mount Yingzhou, and Mount Huliang, resembling divine mountains, islands and creatures of the sea, such as turtles and fish. To the south were the Jade Hall, Bimen (a jade wall), and statues of ostriches from Tiaozhi (Syria), among other grand structures. The Shenming Terrace and Jinggan Tower were also erected, each standing fifty zhang tall, interconnected by promenades for royal carriages.
The Grandee of the Palace, Gongsun Qing, Hu Sui, and the Grand Astronomer, Sima Qian, expressed concerns that the calendar and chronology were in disarray and suggested the rectification of the lunar calendar. In response, the Emperor issued a decree, summoning Ni Kuan and scholars, including Erudite Ci, to deliberate. They collectively proposed the adoption of the Xia calendar, in place of the Qin calendar (Zhuxu Calendar), where the new year began in October.
In May of the summer, a decree was issued for Gongsun Qing, Hu Sui, Sima Qian, and others to create the Taichu calendar of the Han. It fixed the beginning of the year to January, honored yellow color, and designated the number five as the radix. The calendar also formalized government official title names, coordinated musical scales, and standardized rituals for ancestral temples, all codified with the intent to be chartered for future generations.
Meanwhile, the Xiongnu Er Chanyu, inclined towards violence, caused unrest among his people. Additionally, there were natural disasters that led to the widespread death of animals. The Grand Commandant of the Left (Xiongnu) sent a message to the Han, expressing their desire to kill the Chanyu and surrender to the Han. However, because the Han were far away, they expressed their intent to rebel once Han forces arrived to offer assistance. In response, the Emperor dispatched Yinyu[a place in Xiongnu] General Gongsun Ao to construct a city named “Defector Home” outside the border, to serve as a place for receiving defectors.
In August of autumn, the Emperor embarked on a tour to visit Anding.
The Han envoys who entered the Western Regions reported, “Dayuan possesses excellent horses in the city of Ershi[Osh, now in Kyrgyzstan]. However, they refuse to show these horses to the Han ambassadors.” In response, the Emperor sent officers, including Strongman Che Ling, bearing a thousand gold coins and a golden horse statue as an entreaty.
The King of Dayuan, in consultation with his advisors, remarked, “The Han is distant from us, and there are frequent setbacks in the Salt Marshes. To the north, we face attacks from barbarians, and to the south, there is a scarcity of water and grass. Furthermore, the land is barren, lacking in food, and when Han envoys, sometimes numbering in the hundreds, arrive, they often starve, with more than half perishing. How, then, can they mobilize a large army? What threat can they pose to us? The horses in Ershi are precious to Dayuan.” As a result, they refused to grant Che Ling’s request.
The Han diplomat, Che Ling, enraged and swearing in foul language, smashed the golden horse statue and departed. This act of disrespect angered the nobles of Dayuan, who proclaimed, “The Han envoys have insulted us!” They saw the Han envoys fleeing and ordered their eastern border, the King of Yucheng, to intercept and attack them, killing the envoys and seizing their possessions.
This greatly enraged the Emperor. Yao Dinghan, who had previously been to Dayuan, remarked, “Dayuan‘s military is weak. With only about three thousand Han troops armed with strong crossbows, they can be completely subdued.” In the past, the Emperor had dispatched the Marquis of Zhuoye Zhao Ponu with seven hundred riders, and they captured the King of Loulan. Therefore, the Emperor trusted Yao Dinghan’s assessment. Additionally, desiring to honor his favored concubine, Madame Li, he appointed her older brother, Li Guangli, as Ershi General, commanding six thousand riders from principalities and tens of thousands of delinquent youths from commanderies and principalities to attack Dayuan. His task was to capture the excellent horses in Ershi(Osh) city, thus he was given the title of Ershi General. Zhao Shicheng was appointed as the military judge, and former Marquis of Hao, Wang Hui, was appointed as the guide leading the troops. Li Duo was made the colonel to oversee military affairs.
Sima Guang’s commentary: Emperor Wu sought to ennoble the family member of his favored concubine, Madame Li, and dispatched her brother, Li Guangli, to lead troops against Dayuan. His intent seemed to be that ennoblement should be earned through military merit, not by preferential treatment. This was in keeping with the covenant established by Emperor Gaozu. Military campaigns are of great importance, as they are directly tied to the safety of the nation and the lives of its people. If leadership is assigned recklessly, based on superficial accomplishments to gain personal favor, it would be better to forgo the covenant and ennoble someone without merit. Thus, while Emperor Wu was skilled in handling rebellious kingdoms, he faltered in selecting the right leader. If he is praised for upholding the covenant of the former Emperor, I would say such praise is unmerited.
Commandant of the Capital Guard, Wang Wenshu was found guilty of treasonous activities and was sentenced to be exterminated. He chose to take his own life. At the same time, his two brothers, along with their wives’ families, were implicated in various crimes and were also exterminated. Chamberlain Xu Ziwei, remarked, “How tragic! In ancient times, there was the punishment of exterminating three clans, yet Wang Wenshu‘s crimes have led to the extermination of five clans at the same time!”
There was a massive locust infestation in the eastern part of the empire, and the locusts flew as far west as Dunhuang.
The 2nd year of Emperor Wu’s Taichu Era (103 B.C.)
In January of spring, the Marquis Tian of Muqiu, Shi Qing, passed away.
In the intercalary month, Gongsun He, the Grand Coachman, was appointed as the Chancellor and bestowed the title Marquis of Geyi. During this period, the court was filled with numerous issues, and there was strict scrutiny over ministers. The Chancellors succeeded Gongsun Hong were held accountable and died consecutively because of the accusation. Although Shi Qing, the deceased, managed to conclude his service with caution, he was frequently reprimanded. When Gongsun He was nominated as the Chancellor, he declined to accept the seal and ribbon of the office, kneeling with tears and refusing to rise. The Emperor stood up and left the court, Gongsun He, feeling compelled, accepted the appointment, saying, “I am a dead man!” when he left the court.
In March, the Emperor traveled to Hedong to pay a sacrifice to Mother Earth.
During May of summer, there was a census conducted to register the horses owned by officials and plebeians to replenish the cavalry’s horses.
In autumn, there was a locust infestation.
As the Ershi General Li Guangli moved westward, passing through the Salt Marshes, the small kingdoms along the way refused to provide provisions, defending their cities. Despite attempts to besiege them, they couldn’t be conquered. Some surrendering cities replenished food supply, but those that resisted were abandoned after several days’ siege. By the time they reached Yucheng, the troops numbered no more than several thousand, all exhausted and hungry. The attack on Yucheng ended in a major defeat, causing heavy casualties among the troops. Ershi General, along with Li Duo, Zhao Shicheng, and others, discussed, “If we couldn’t capture Yucheng, how could we take their capital?” They then retreated.
Upon reaching Dunhuang, the troop numbers had dwindled to just around a tenth of the initial force. They sent a message pleading, “The road was long, and there was a great shortage of food. Moreover, the soldiers were more concerned about hunger than about fighting. The troops were few in number, insufficient to capture Dayuan. We request that the campaign be temporarily halted, additional forces be raised, and then we continue the march.”
When the Emperor heard this, he was greatly angered and sent an envoy to block Yumen Pass with an order, “Any troops attempting to enter the Yumen Pass are to be immediately executed!” Fearing the Emperor’s wrath, Ershi General chose to remain stationed at Dunhuang.
The Emperor, still worrying about the long distance between the City of Defector Home from the Xiongnu, dispatched Junji General Zhao Ponu, commanding over 20,000 cavalry, to travel more than 2,000 li northwest from Shuofang with the aim to reach the Junji Mountains and return. When the Marquis of Zhuoye, Zhao Ponu, arrived at the appointed time, the Left Grand Commandant of Xiongnu intended to collaborate with the Han but his intent was uncovered. The Chanyu executed him, deployed the Left Wing troops, and attacked the Marquis of Zhuoye. As the Marquis of Zhuoye led a counter-offensive, capturing several thousand POWs, he was en route back and was around 400 li away from the City of Defector Home when an enemy force of 80,000 Xiongnu cavalry besieged them.
The Marquis of Zhuoye ventured out at night to seek water and was captured by the Xiongnu while trying to escape. Seizing the opportunity, Xiongnu launched a sudden assault on his troops. Dreading the consequences of the loss of their commander, the officers in the army feared execution upon return, and with no one to encourage fighting back, the army surrendered to the Xiongnu.
The Chanyu was greatly pleased with this victory and then sent a special force to attack the City of Defector Home. However, they couldn’t conquer the cities, so they pillaged the borderlands before departing.
In December of the winter, Ni Kuan, Grand Master of Censorate, passed away.
Reflection by Rio Grande 