The Origin of East Asian Medieval Capital Construction System: The Ancient City of Ye 1003168728, 9781003168720

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The Origin of East Asian Medieval Capital Construction System

Ye is a historical Chinese city built in 659 BC and burned down to the ground in A D 580. The book investigates the characteristics of the city’s layout and its deep influence on urban construction in East Asia since the 6th century AD . By studying archaeological findings and historical documents, the author illustrates the historical significance of Ye city, both as a capital for six dynasties over 370 years of ancient Chinese history and as a paragon of East Asian capital planning. Ye serves as an exemplary model for famous capitals in later dynasties of imperial China, such as Beijing and Xi’an. Its influence also extends to other East Asian capitals, including Seoul in Korea, Kyoto in Japan, and Hanoi in Vietnam. Comparing the archetypical structure of Ye city and the features of its East Asian descendants, the author encapsulates the lineage of capital city development across medieval East Asia and uncovers a philosophy of constriction that rests upon traditional Chinese thinking. The book will be an essential read for scholars and general readers interested in East Asian heritage, urbanology, and architecture, as well as a useful reference for urban planners willing to learn from historical experience. Niu Runzhen is a professor in the School of History at Renmin University of China. His fields of interest are the history of Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties, and East Asia’s ancient capitals.

China Perspectives

The China Perspectives series focuses on translating and publishing works by leading Chinese scholars, writing about both global topics and China-​ related themes. It covers Humanities & Social Sciences, Education, Media and Psychology, as well as many interdisciplinary themes. This is the first time any of these books have been published in English for international readers. The series aims to put forward a Chinese perspective, give insights into cutting-​edge academic thinking in China, and inspire researchers globally. To submit proposals, please contact the Taylor & Francis Publisher for China Publishing Programme, Lian Sun ([email protected]). Titles in history currently include: Contemporary Studies on Modern Chinese History I Edited by Zeng Yeying Contemporary Studies on Modern Chinese History II Edited by Zeng Yeying Shamanic and Mythic Cultures of Ethnic Peoples in Northern China I Shamanic Deities and Rituals Fu Yuguang Shamanic and Mythic Cultures of Ethnic Peoples in Northern China II Shamanic Divination, Myths, and Idols Fu Yuguang Contemporary Studies on Modern Chinese History III Edited by Zeng Yeying The Origin of East Asian Medieval Capital Construction System The Ancient City of Ye Niu Runzhen For more information, please visit https://​www.routledge.com/​China-​ Perspectives/book-​series/​CPH

The Origin of East Asian Medieval Capital Construction System The Ancient City of Ye Niu Runzhen

This publication was supported by the fund for building world-​class universities (disciplines) of Renmin University of China First published 2021 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN and by Routledge 605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2021 Niu Runzhen The right of Niu Runzhen to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. English Version by permission of China Renmin University Press. British Library Cataloguing-​in-​Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging-​in-​Publication Data Names: Niu, Runzhen, author. Title: The origin of East Asian medieval capital construction system: the ancient city of Ye / Niu Runzhen. Other titles: Gu du Yecheng yan jiu. English. Description: Abingdon, Oxon; New York, NY: Routledge, 2021. | Series: China perspectives. History | Translation of: Gu du Yecheng yan jiu: zhong shi ji dong Ya du cheng zhi du tan yuan. | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2021001190 (print) | LCCN 2021001191 (ebook) | ISBN 9780367768294 (hardback) | ISBN 9780367768300 (paperback) | ISBN 9781003168720 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Linzhang Xian (China)–History. | Anyang Shi (China)–History. | Extinct cities–China–Hebei Sheng. | City planning–China–Hebei Sheng–History. | Capitals (Cities)–East Asia–History. | China–History–Zhou dynasty, 1122–221 B.C. | China–History–221 B.C.–960 A.D. | East Asia–Civilization–Chinese influences. Classification: LCC DS797.39.L566 N5813 2021(print) | LCC DS797.39.L566 (ebook) | DDC 951/.152–dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021001190 LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021001191 ISBN: 978-​0-​367-​76829-​4 (hbk) ISBN: 978-​0-​367-​76830-​0 (pbk) ISBN: 978-​1-​003-​16872-​0 (ebk) Typeset in Times New Roman by Newgen Publishing UK

Contents

Introduction

1

1 Ye City’s rise as a regional center

36

2 Ye capital of Cao-Wei and its layout system

52

3 Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum: Layout of the Ye Palace City

126

4 Changes and destruction of the Ye City in the Wei and Jin dynasties

156

5 Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao and its layout design

172

6 Ye City’s prosperity in Former Yan and its decline in later dynasties

216

Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout on ancient capitals in East Asia

226

Bibliography Index

253 260

Introduction

I.  General overview Everyone knows that a city is a community where human beings can live, work, and do other things. Up to now, any such community has existed more than 3,000 years. From the modern period, the pace of urbanization has been getting faster and faster, which has brought us an increasing number of cities that are becoming more diverse and more complicated. As there are a great diversity of cities, urban historians usually categorize cities based on their common characteristics. For instance, Giedion Sjoberg dichotomized cities into two kinds, namely preindustrial cities and industrial cities. Instead, Weber divided cities into western cities and eastern cities. Skinner went further in this aspect, Where can we take the tradition of constructed ideal types that once figured so importantly in the sociological literature on premodern urbanism? For one thing, the inherited types can be subdivided, refined, and developed into a logically constructed hierarchical typology. Sjoberg’s scheme, which derives ultimately from a typology of societies, in effect holds that all nonindustrial cities were found in societies of a single basic type. Other analysts posit two, three, or even four basic societal types where Sjoberg sees one, and at the very least his “preindustrial city” should be subdivided into the cities of agrarian civilizations (with literate elites) and those of primitive states (without them). Each of the three (or more) basic types of cities might then be dichotomized into autonomous/​ enclaved versus dependent/​integrated. These subtypes in turn could then be subdivided on a cultural/​geographic basis, whereby the dependent/​ integrated category occurring in primitive states would be broken down into its New World examples (Inca, Aztec, etc.) and its African examples, and the dependent/​integrated category in agrarian civilizations would be broken down (initially) into East European, Middle Eastern, Hindic, Sinic, etc. Finally, the Sinic grouping (to take the relevant case) would at the next level down in the hierarchy be subdivided into its Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese, and other variants. With a refined

2 Introduction hierarchical typology of this kind, we could reasonably test as contingency generalizations propositions alleged to hold for Chinese cities, for all Sinic cities, for dependent/​integrated cities in agrarian civilizations everywhere, for all cities in agrarian civilizations, and finally for all cities.1 But whatever the division, all Oriental cities are of the same category. To put it more clearly, capital cities first matured in China and then their layouts and underlying thoughts were introduced into other East Asian countries. In this way, those countries built their capitals more or less similarly. Even modern cities still show some signs of this capital lineage system. So, how did China’s ancient cities influence the entire East Asia? A capital city has been considered to have the best of the best locations, which produced a tremendous impact on other cities at home and many capitals of those neighboring countries. From the medieval period onwards, all those countries borrowed China’s capital layout, which consists of three rectangles (imperial palace, royal city, and bailey). This layout system has the following characteristics: First, main buildings are located symmetrically along a south–​north central axis. Second, streets are distributed like a checkerboard; palaces and city gates are named after the heaven, earth, sun, moon, stars, and four seasons in line with the Eastern philosophy oriented to human–​nature harmony. These characteristics constitute the universal qualities of China’s ancient capitals Ye (邺城), Chang’an (长安), Bianliang (汴梁), Khanbaliq (大都), and Beijing (北京); Goguryeo’s capital Pyeongyang (平壤城), Silla’s capital Kyongju (王京), Baekje’s capitals Wiryeseong (慰礼城), Gwangju (广州), Ungjin (熊津), and Sabiseong (泗沘城), Goryeo’s capital Gaeseong (开城京), Joseon’s capital Hanyang (汉阳 present-​day Seoul); Japan’s ancient capitals Fujiwara-​ kyo (藤原京), Heijo-​ kyo (平城京), Heian-​ kyo (平安京); Vietnam’s ancient capitals Thanlong (升龙) and Hue (顺化); and ancient Ryukyu’s capital Shuri-​joa (首里城). Local cities and especially their government offices follow the plane layout of imperial palaces to embody the concept of feudal centralization. Feng Youlan’s Autobiography (冯友兰自述) depicts the layout system of the government mansion of Chongyang county, Hubei province in the Qing dynasty, Above the government gate is hung a vertical tablet inscribed with three characters “Chongyang County (崇阳县).” The vertical shape means that the magistrate is a representative of the emperor. Enter the front gate, through Yi gate and you will come to the Great Hall. The facade of the hall is flanked by two rows of houses, namely offices of six departments: First, three eastern ones served personnel, revenue and rite affairs. Second, three western ones served military, criminal, and work affairs. … The center of the great hall is home to a Warm Pavilion (暖阁) where there are a desk and a chair for the county magistrate. Above the door of the pavilion, there is an inscription “Incorruptibility, Prudence and Diligence (清慎勤),” which turns out to be a succinct regulation

Introduction  3 made by Zhu Yuanzhang (朱元璋), the founding emperor of the Ming dynasty. Later the Qing dynasty continued using the inscription as a precept. The front of the Warm Pavilion boasts two tall stands, with a roll of yellow cloth placed on one stand and a box wrapped in yellow cloth on the other stand. … The roll and the box should contain the imperial edict and the official seal respectively, which means that the county magistrate governs affairs on behalf of the emperor. … Behind the great hall lies the gate of the magistrate’s personal house. Get in and you will see the second hall. Behind the second hall stands the third hall. Enter this hall, turn west and you will see the Decorated Room (花厅) where the county magistrate greeted his guests. To the west of the room stands the Signing Room, namely the magistrate’s office. And behind this room lies a courtyard adjoining the main rooms. … The kitchen and other associated rooms are all located within the eastern courtyard. This is the universal layout for all prefectural and county governments. Feng also wrote, The Imperial Palace and the County Yamen have the same layout. So, the county yamen is an Imperial Palace in miniature and the Imperial Palace is in turn a gargantuan County Yamen (the Chinese term of a government). … The imperial palace lies within the world-​famous Forbidden City and the Imperial City in turn encircles the Palace. The front gate of the Imperial City is Tian’an Gate (天安门). In front of this gate, there is a guard city wall cutting Chang’an Street (长安街) into two halves and further sprawling somewhere near the front gatetower. … The intersection has east and west sides, each having three holes that are dubbed “Three Gates.” The southern tip of this wall has another gate, which was named after the Ming dynasty and changed to the Daqing Gate (大清门) in the Qing dynasty. After the Qing dynasty’s demise, it was renamed ‘Zhonghua Gate (中华门). These names imply that the master of the house within the gate is the ruler of each dynasty as a vertical tablet above the gate of a county yamen indicates. Outside the guard wall between Tian’an Gate and Daqing Gate, there are three grand government offices on each side (east and west). The eastern ones served the Ministries of Personnel, Revue and Rite; the western ones served the Ministries of Military, Penalty and Works. They functioned like those two rows of houses flanking the great hall of the aforesaid county government. Walk into Tian’an Gate, through Duan Gate (端门) and Wu Gate (午门), and finally you will reach Hall of Supreme Harmony (太和殿),2 namely the Grand Hall where the emperor took the throne or held court. The Hall of Perfect Harmony (中和殿)3 is the second hall and the Hall of the Preservation of Harmony (保和殿)4 is the third hall. Behind the Hall of the Preservation of Harmony lies Gate of Heavenly Purity (乾清门), in fact the gate of the emperor’s private house—​ Palace of Heavenly Purity (乾清宫)5. In other words, this gate divides the

4 Introduction Imperial Palace into Outer Court (外朝) and Inner Court (内廷). The palace can be considered a royal version of a house’s main room.6 Not only did imperial cities and local governments follow suit, but also prefectural and county seats imitated capital layouts. This has been a widespread occurrence in ancient Korea, Japan, Vietnam, and Ryukyu. This system did not emerge out of nothing in the Ming or Qing dynasty, but came as a result of long ages of evolution. There is ample evidence that Ye city had formed such a system no later than the Eastern Han epoch, showcasing some characteristics such as regular layout, axial symmetry, clear-​cut south–​north axis, imperial city located within the bailey, and checkerboard-​ shaped streets. This system influenced not just Daxing (大兴) of the Sui dynasty, Chang’an (长安) of the Tang dynasty, and Beijing of the Ming and Qing dynasties, but even capital cities in China’s surrounding countries. For example, Goguryeo (高句丽) built the Pyeongyang city in line with this layout in the sixth century. Likewise, ancient Japan adopted the architectural layout of the Chinese capital system back in the seventh century and later built Fujiwara-​kyo and Heijo-​kyo following the layout of Chang’an. In the 11th century, Vietnam’s Lý dynasty built Thanlong according to the layout system of ancient Chinese capitals, and the Nguyen dynasty built Hue in similar fashion. Ancient Ryukyu’s capital Shuri-​joa was directly affected by Beijing of the Ming dynasty. All these countries planned their capital cities based on the same layout philosophy, which constitutes the fundamental characteristic of ancient cities in East Asia. Chinese, Korean, Japanese, and Vietnamese scholars related their research on the ancient capital system to the Ye city because it is likely the origin of Sinic cities. However, the ancient city was burnt to ashes and debris by Yang Jian’s (杨坚) in AD 580. It was weathered and then submerged by the Zhang River. Over long time spans, the basic appearance of the city has been unknown. Now its depth ranges from around 0.5–​10 meters below the ground surface. What’s more, there are few extant texts about the city, and large-​scale excavations are unlikely to be launched at present. For these reasons, Chinese and overseas scholars know little about the city and thus have tremendous difficulty in pinpointing the historical trajectory of the construction system of medieval East Asian capital cities. It is unlikely for us to solve all questions about the Ye city in one go considering the enormous complexity of this issue, but at least, this study crosschecks ancient texts with unearthed objects and on-​site surveys, trying to restore the Ye cityscape and clarify its layout system. In the following chapters, comparative studies can be conducted between Chinese capitals like Ye and those capitals elsewhere in East Asia so that, the historical lineage of the East Asian capital layout will come to light. Of course, it entails tremendous effort to address this issue. To put it more clearly, relevant questions like the initial establishment of Ye city, the origin of the place name, the surrounding geographical environment of the city, the historical role of the city, historical records, and relevant studies in China and

Introduction  5 abroad should be clarified. Otherwise, it would be unlikely to unravel the mystery of the ancient city.

II.  Origin Ye city owes its origin to Duke Huan of Qi (齐桓公) of the Spring and Autumn period. The “Xiaokuang (小匡)” chapter of Master Guan (管子) says, Duke Huan of Qi “built Wulu (五鹿), Zhongmou (中牟) and Ye to defend the Proto-​states (诸夏).”7 Cui Xian (崔铣) quoted Tombs of Cities (城冢记) in the “Geographical Records (地理志)” chapter in volume 2 of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture (彰德府志) of the Jiajing period of the Ming dynasty, “When Di (狄) subdued Xing (邢) and Wei (卫), Duke Huan of Qi built the Ye to defend the Proto-​states.” It is argued that Huangfu Jian (皇甫鉴), a scholar of the late Eastern Han epoch or the Tang dynasty, wrote Tombs of Cities. This book just mentions the name of the city and the name of the person who ordered the construction of the city. Di’s subjugation of Xing happened in 662 B C and its occupation of Wei happened in 660 B C . When the occupation happened, Duke Huan of Qi came to Wei’s rescue and moved its people to Chuqiu (楚丘, present-​day Hua county, Henan province). So the construction of Ye should occur around this year. The extant Ye site lies northwest of Chuqiu of the Spring and Autumn period and it should be the original location, which means that the city never changed its location over long periods. An etymological analysis of the character ye (邺) may help clarify the provenance of the place name. This character has two parts—compound ye (业) and radical yi (阝). On the one hand, according to Yue Zhai’s (约斋) The Provenance of Characters (字源), 业 takes the traditional form of 業, which is further broken down into cluster (丵) and wood (木) and therefore is considered as an ideograph of clustering grass. On the other hand, 阝 is the same as fu (阜), which refers to an earthen mound or hill. It is also considered tantamount to yi (邑). Eastern Han-​epoch scholar Xu Shen (许慎) explained the character in “Radical Yi (邑部)” in volume 6 (Part II) of An Analytical Dictionary of Chinese Characters (说文解字),8 “It refers to a county under Wei commandery. Its pronunciation is a blend of the initial ‘y’ of the character yi (邑) and the rime ‘e’ of the character ye (业).” The form and origin of the character give a hint of why it is a place name and where it was initially built. More clearly, the city should be located on quite a high earthen mound teeming with grass and trees. It is a pity that the layout and buildings of the original city built by Duke Huan are already beyond investigation. When writing the “Basic Annals of Xiang Yu (项羽本纪)” chapter in volume 7 of Collected Annotations to Records of the Grand Historian (史记集 解), Pei Yin (裴骃) quoted from Ancient Texts from Ji Tomb (汲冢古文), “Yin site is 30 li south of Ye.” The “Preface (书序)” of The Book of History (尚书) mentions another quote from the same book, “Pan Geng (盘庚) moved the capital from Yan (奄) to Yin (殷), 30 li away from Ye.” Sima Zhen (司马贞) also cited the book in Commentary on Records of the Grand Historian (史记索隐),

6 Introduction “Pan Geng moved the capital from Yan to Beimeng (北蒙), which is now called Yinxu (殷墟) and 30 li away from Ye.” Yinxu is about 30 li southwest of the Ye site. This indicates that Ancient Texts from Ji Tomb basically provides the correct information about Ye. Ancient Texts from Ji Tomb, unearthed at the tomb of King Xiang of Wei (318 BC –296 B C ) or King Anli (276 B C –243 BC ), gives an account of Ye, the capital of Wei of the Warring States period. The “Turbid Zhang River (浊漳水)” chapter in volume 10 of The Commentary on the Waterway Classic says, “[Ye city] was originally built by Duke Huan of Qi. … Later on, it belonged to Jin and this land was titled Wei in the seventh year of Duke Wen of Wei.” It also says, “Duke Wen of Wei appointed Ximen Bao (西门豹) as Magistrate of Ye and Ximen Bao diverted the Zhang River for irrigation’s sake. In the reign of King Xiang of Wei, Shi Qi (史起) acted as county magistrate and built a weir to control the water. As a result, the local fields became fertile and the ordinary people praised him highly.” Ximen Bao and Shi Qi’s merits are recorded in the “Wei (魏)” chapter of Strategies of the Warring States (战国策)9, “Biographies of Jesters (滑稽列传),”10 the “Treatise on Canals (沟洫志)”11 chapter of The Book of Han (汉书), Western Jin-dynasty writer Zuo Si’s (左思) “Wei Capital Rhapsody (魏都赋)” and other texts. The Ye city mentioned in all the literature prior to the Wei and Jin dynasties is exactly the location of the present-​day relic site, which means the city never changed its location from the time of Duke Huan of Qi’s first completion through the Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties. In the 1990s, Jiao Zhiqin (焦智勤) et al. at Henan-​based Anyang Museum acquired pottery stamps from the Spring and Autumn period through the Han and Wei dynasties. It is interesting that there are two stamps involving character ye (業), one impressed on a half-​tile and the other impressed on a pottery piece, which are akin to the writing style of the Spring and Autumn period rather than the Warring States period. This character can also be found in bronze script (金文). It is likely that character ye (邺) was created by combining together ye (业) and yi (邑) when First Emperor of Qin abolished the writing systems of the six states inconsistent with Qin’s seal script (小篆). Since then, 邺 has been the character dedicated to the city. Each character 邺 appearing in pre-​Qin texts was changed by scholars of the Han dynasty. Judging from the character on the pottery, the site of Ye’s first completion seems to be within the scope of the present-​day site.12 “The discovery of the pottery writings from the Spring and Autumn period to Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties, in particular those involving character ye, fill in the gap of academic literature. It proves that the city had experienced incessant reforms from beginning to end.”13 The character was first written as 业 and later became 邺 when radical 邑 was added. Some other scholars argued that it should be pronounced the same as yi (cloth 衣). He Jiuying (何九盈) wrote in Archaic Phonetics (上古音), “I presume that the initial of character ‘业’ is a molar teeth sound (牙音)14 and pronounced ‘jap’ at Grade III in the rhyme tables of the initial consonant ‘ye (叶).’ ” It is in the same category as nie (孽), nue (虐), yue (月), ni (逆), yi (宜),

Introduction  7 yi (仪), yi (疑), yu (玉), yan (言), ruan (阮), and ye (业). The rime of ye (业) belongs to the Ye Group at Grade III. As a character with an entering tone (入声字), 业 is of the same kind as jie (劫), qie (怯), and xie (胁).”15 Character 业 is pronounced ‘衣’ and 衣 is interchangeable with 殷. “The Doctrine of the Mean (中庸)” chapter of The Book of Rites (礼记) says, “He once buckled on his armor.”16 Zheng Xuan (郑玄) annotated, “It is an erroneous view that yi should be pronounced the same as yin. However, natives of Qi hold this opinion.” He also said, “The words ‘buckled on his armor’ mean that the incumbent king planned to overturn the Yin empire.” The word yi wang (衣王) in bone script (甲骨文) unearthed at Zhouyuan (Zhou Plain 周原) is actually yin wang (King of Yin 殷王). Yin (殷) is also referred to as Yi (郼). The “Being Careful When the State Is Large (慎大)”17 chapter of Annals of Lü (吕氏春秋) says, the people of Xia “showed allegiance to Yi as they had shown to Xia;” Gao You (高诱) annotated, “郼 has the same pronunciation as 衣 and now natives of Yanzhou (兖州) still use the pronunciation. It means that the subjects of Jie swore allegiance to Yin as they had sworn to Xia.” The three characters 郼, 衣, and 业 are all interchangeable with 殷. Wang Guowei (王国维) criticized in Collected Works from the Hall of Contemplation (观堂集林)18 that Qing dynasty scholar Liang Yusheng (梁玉绳) “did not know ye (邺) is the same as yin (殷)”19 though Liang quoted from the “Record of State Names (国名纪)” chapter of The Great History (路史) in his work Questions on Records of the Grand Historian (史记志疑), “Shangjia (上甲) moved the capital of the Shang to Ye and this is another relocation.” Yin, Ye, and Handan (邯郸) in similar geographic locations took turns to rise and fall in ancient history of China. Ye city was perched on a hill in the Eastern Plain east of the Taihang Mountains. The hill is also known as Kuiqiu (葵丘). Ancient Places of the Spring and Autumn Period (春秋古地) claims, “Kuiqiu is a place name that refers to the location of the present-​day Three Terraces west of Ye.”20 The Zhang River flowed past the western side of Ye and went further northeast. Duke Huan of Qi built Ye to defend the vassal states and the city initially might have been just a fortress. In the plain, most fortresses are located on a river; and Ye was no exception. The location of the city is high in the west and adjacent to the Zhang River. Besides, the location is along the south–​ north path on the eastern piedmont of the Taihang Mountains. Duke Huan built the city relying on the terrain of the hill to make the Zhang River a natural barrier for invading ethnic groups from the north. In the Warring States period, Wei and Zhao established county seats out there. And Ye was a crucial pivot on the path between Daliang (大梁 present-​day Kaifeng, Henan province) and Handan. In 259 BC when the Qin troops besieged Handan, Wei sent Jin Bi (晋鄙) with a force of 100,000 to save the city. As the reinforcement arrived, they did not dare to march forth. At the critical moment, Lord Xinling stole the tiger-​shaped tally (虎符), assassinating Jin Bi and dissolving the besiegement. This is a famous idiom: “Stole the tally to save Zhao (窃符救赵).” In the 12th year of Emperor Gaozu of the Han, Wei

8 Introduction commandery was founded and Ye was assigned the commandery seat. Later, Wang Mang renamed it Weicheng. During the reign of Emperor Lingdi of the Eastern Han epoch, it became the official seat of Jizhou (冀州). Cao Cao (曹操) was enfeoffed with State Wei, and he made Ye the capital. Later when his son Cao Pi (曹丕) mounted the throne and established the capital in Luoyang, Ye was still called the Second Capital (陪都). Afterwards, Later Zhao (后赵), Ran-Wei (冉魏), Former Yan (前燕), Eastern Wei (东魏), and Northern Qi (北齐) established their capitals at Ye. In this way, Ye became the largest capital city of northern China. Its growing historic prestige has close ties with the superb geographical conditions. In the west, the Taihang Mountains sprawl south as a natural barrier; in the south, the Yellow River roars loudly; in the east, many rivers run into the sea, which provides convenient river grain transport and sea transport; in the north, the vast, fertile plain “serves as a traffic hub of the Hebei region and China.”21 The Bai Trench (白沟), Qi River (淇水), Dang River (荡水), and Huan River (洹水) rise from the western mountains, flow past the southern side of Ye and towards the northeastern plain; the northwestern and northern sides of the city adjoin the Zhang River, and the Fu River gurgles 15 li northwest of the city. There are many lakes such as Huang Mere (黄泽), Cormorant Lake (鸬鹚陂), and Dalu Mere (大陆泽) scattered around the city between the Yellow River and the aforementioned rivers, all of which can be regarded as natural moats for the city. Moreover, all these waters regulated the water supply to Ye. The surrounding passes, passages, ferries, bridges, and paths were all checkpoints on the multilevel traffic network of the city. Go west through the gap of the Fu River and past Hu pass, and you will arrive in Jinyang (晋阳); get through the Jingjing Pass (井陉关) and Tianmen Pass (天门关) and you will arrive in Bingzhou (并州) or Yanmen (雁门); as the Yellow River flows east and then turns northeast, ferries like White Horse Ferry (白马津) and Cangting Ferry (仓亭津) became gateways of Ye to the Henan region; leave Ye, go southwest and past Meng Ferry(梦津) and you will reach Luoyang; cross Red Bridge (赤桥) in the east of Ye and you will get direct access to Qi (齐) or Lu (鲁). Geographically, Ye is less inaccessible than Chang’an or Luoyang, but more strategic than the two cities. Why? Because it holds a pivotal location between the Guanzhong, Henan, Hebei, and North regions and thus has tremendous military leeway. It is a nature-​favored strategic place especially in the eyes of northern nomads. In the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, East and West had been in fierce wrangling. At first, all the six states united against Qin and later the strong Qin joined forces with some states to fight others. In this way, the Guanzhong controlled the Shandong region (East of Mount Xiao 山东). During the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, Ye and Handan were two cities of military significance. The South–​North confrontation arose in the later Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties when northern nomads like Jie (羯), Di (氐), Qiang (羌), Xiongnu (匈奴), and Xianbei (鲜卑) went south and established their

Introduction  9 regimes, controlling Hebei through their base in the Henan region, in hopes of conquering the whole world. The Henan region has been called a place vulnerable to attack. When any leader wants to unify the world, this region must be obtained. But when the world is reunified, any dynasty or state that is based in the region invites its demise inevitably. … The greatest danger comes from behind and this danger consists in the adjoining Hebei region. To guard the Henan, Guanzhong or Hebei must be guarded well. For the Henan region, seven out of ten calamities came from Guanzhong and nine out of ten calamities came from Hebei. … Overall, if your troops are stationed in Hebei, you can control Henan. This has been a truth from ancient times.22 So, which city should be made the capital to conquer the world apart from the base in the Central China roughly tantamount to the Henan region? A thorough investigation of all cities in the Henan region denotes that Wan (宛 present-​ day Nanyang) is inferior to Luoyang and Luoyang inferior to Ye. … The Ye city nestles along the Taihang Mountains, controls the Zhang and Fu Rivers. Back in the Xia and Shang dynasties, there were states establishing their capitals out there. In the Warring States period, Zhao guarded the city to oppose Qin and in turn Qin took the city before annexing Zhao. In the late Han dynasty, Yuan Shao failed to guard the city and it fell into the hands of Cao Cao. As a result, the warlord reigned over the whole China. In the declining period of the Jin dynasty, Liu Kun (刘琨) failed to guard the city and it slipped into the clutches of Shi Le, making it possible for Shi Le to ravage Sizhou (司州) and Yuzhou (豫州) prefectures. Likewise, Ran Min (冉闵) failed to guard the city in the last years of the Later Zhao, Murong Jun (慕容儁) took it and therefore annexed the entire Shandong region. In the autumn years of Northern Wei, Erzhu Zhao (尔朱兆) failed to guard the city and Gao Huan (高欢) took it, usurping the power of Wei. Later Yuchi Jiong (尉迟迥) rose up against Yang Jian (杨坚) by assigning his troops to the city, which made the people near and far feel shocked, stupefied. Since ancient times, it has been easy to control Luoyang through Ye but difficult to do the opposite.23 Cao-​Wei, Later Zhao, Ran-Wei, Former Yan, Eastern Wei, and Northern Qi all built their capitals at the city, and it became the stronghold for them to conquer the world. It is easy to see that Ye city set the stage for the centuries-​ long South–​North confrontation and the subsequent Sui dynasty’s reunification of China. Ye was definitely a traffic pivot in the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods or the Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties. Such a superb location brought about major changes through the ages in an all-​round

10 Introduction way. Especially in the Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties, northern ethnic groups established and developed their regimes, relocating the well-​developed Central Plain agricultural economy to the Southern Region (江南) and absorbing nutrients from Han Chinese culture. Moreover, these regimes borrowed the regulations of Han Chinese regimes and reshaped their ways of life. For these reasons, ethnic fusion occurred everywhere, especially in present-​day central and southern Hebei province and northern and western Henan province. Most nomad chiefs established their capitals in Ye, the heartland of the main ethnic fusion area, as soon as they took over the city. They hailed themselves emperors and conducted sinicization policies. Both Shi Le and Murong Jun completed feudalization of their regimes out there. When the Tuoba (拓跋) royalty of Northern Wei occupied Ye, they imitated the language and costumes of central China and repeatedly proposed relocation of their capital to the city. Emperor Xiaowen made the decision to conduct ethnic reform in Ye and relocated the capital to Luoyang, building a palace in Ye and learning the customs of the central China. As the capital was relocated, the royalty changed into Chinese surnames, spoke Chinese language, and wore Chinese costumes. In this way, they gradually blended into the Chinese nation. When Northern Zhou (北周) subdued Northern Qi, the emperor entered Ye and valued Confucian scholars and sages. Besides, scholars of the Shandong region were introduced, making the Northern Zhou stronger than ever. These dynastic changes marked Ye becoming the pivot for ethnic fusion between northern nomads and southern Han Chinese. Ethnic fusion basically spread south and mainly took the form of mass migration. The border areas suffered famines and many people moved south. Yet many more residents were refugees of incessant wars around that time. Each time a war erupted in central China, northern nomads would march south and occupy the Hebei region in hopes of expanding their territory southward and taking away laborers from the north. As the Eight Kings revolted against the Western Jin regime, ethnic groups like Xianbei and Jie went south, harrying central China. As a result, the Jin royalty crossed the Yangtze River and established the Eastern Jin dynasty out there. Later, with the central China as his base, Shi Le attacked Jin Zhun (靳准) and moved 100,000 captives of Qiang and Jie ethnic tribes to Jizhou; took Shanggui (上邽) and subdued Former Zhao, moving the state’s 9,000 people consisting of ministerial officials, refugees from Guandong, and large clans from Qinyong (秦雍 around the present-​day Xi’an, Shanxi province) to Xiang and 150,000 Di and Qiang residents to Sizhou and Jizhou; pacified the Guanzhong, moving residents of Qinyong and more than 100,000 households of Di and Qiang to the Guandong region. During the Later Zhao dynasty, Ye and Jizhou were inhabited by more than 300,000 people. Soon after, Later Zhao fell into chaos and 200,000 refugees left the Hebei region for the Eastern Jin court. Ran Min butchered ethnic groups such as Zhi and Qiang, taking a heavy toll of more than 200,000 casualties. Then Zhi and Qiang refugees of Sizhou and Jizhou also returned west, amounting to more than 100,000. Later Fu Jian (苻坚)

Introduction  11 moved 40,000-​odd local scholars and common people to Chang’an and Fu Pi (苻丕) moved 60,000 households from Ye to Jinyang, followed by Murong De’s (慕容德) relocation of 40,000 households to Huatai (滑台). As a whole, population migration flowed south. But given the infighting and population-​ takeaway of northern ethnic regimes, the population fluctuated sharply with the rise and fall of those regimes. In the Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties, Ye became the target of attacks by strong northern ethnic groups and thus was inhabited by a great number of ethnic people. The city possessed a superb location, excellent water resources, convenient traffic, well-​developed agriculture, and a soaring population. Therefore, Cao Cao, posthumously titled Emperor Wudi of Wei, established the capital there. Unfortunately, it was burnt to ashes by Ji Sang (汲桑) during the last days of the Western Jin epoch. But in the Later Zhao dynasty, Shi Le (石勒) and Shi Hu (石虎) rebuilt the city and made it their capital. It was damaged again when Ran Min (冉闵) revolted against the Later Zhao regime. And later when Former Yan established its capital there, the city received a new lease of life. Afterwards, Former Qin (前秦) took Ye and Former Yan fell, and Northern Wei took Former Qin’s place; the city had been declining. Eastern Wei moved the capital to Ye and Northern Qi replaced it, renovating North Ye City (邺北城) and building South Ye City (邺南城), which led to a revival of the city. Northern Zhou conquered Northern Qi and Yang Jian relocated the local residents, burning down the bustling city. In this way, after three periods of prosperity, the city was finally reduced to ashes. Even the remaining debris of the city sank into the earth and sand, lying undiscovered underground to this day.

III.  Oblivion and erroneous locations As the relic site was submerged beneath the Zhang River over time, later men of letter mistakenly determined its specific location according to their own geographical systems of reference. And these geographical systems didn’t have the same origin owing to changes of administrative division through the ages. In the view of the “Monograph on Historical Territory (疆域志)” chapter of Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志),24 Extra Annotations to the “Monograph on Historical Territory” of Records of the Three Kingdoms, and volume 28 of Comprehensive Gazetteer of the Great Ming (大明一统志),25 “Ye county is 20 li west of Linzhang county.” According to volume 159 of Comprehensive Gazetteer of the Great Qing (大清一统志)26 and Cao Xuequan’s (曹学佺) Records of Famous Places of Interest (名胜志), “The Ye city was downgraded to a town in the Song dynasty and 20 li west of Linzhang county.” Gu Zuyu described the city in volume 19 of Essentials of Geography for Reading History (读史方舆纪要),27 “Yezhen village is actually the location of the past Ye city. The Gazetteer of the City (邑志) claims that the present county seat is … nearly 40 li away from the past Ye city.” Yang Shoujing (杨守敬) said in volume 3 of Studies on Historical Records of the Book of Sui and Addenda (隋书地理考证附补遗), “Ye is 40 li southwest

12 Introduction of Linzhang county.” Great Dictionary of Chinese Ancient and Modern Place Names (中国古今地名大辞典)28 says, “The ancient Ye city is 40 li west of present-​day Linzhang county, Henan province.” The volume 8 of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture gives a different record, “North Ye City is 1.5 li southeast of Yezhen village.” Dictionary of Words and Phrases (辞海)29 argues that the ancient Ye city “is 1.5 li east of the present-​day Yezhen village in the southwest of Linzhang county, Hebei province.” Those books mainly consider the Ye city as 20 or 40 li west of Linzhang county seat or 40 li southwest of the county seat or 1.5 li southeast or east of the Ye town, according to the location of Linzhang county seat or Ye town. Ye town was set up in the Northern Song epoch and Ye county was established with its seat located at Ye during the Eastern Wei. In the second year (580) of the Daxiang period of Northern Zhou, Yang Jian burnt down Ye city and moved the seats of Xiangzhou prefecture, Wei commandery, and Ye county to Anyang, 45 li southwest of the original site. Consequently, Anyang was renamed Ye, and Lingzhi county (灵芝县) was established at the original site. In the tenth year (590) of the Kaihuang period of the Sui dynasty, Anyang and Lingzhi restored their original names, with Lingzhi county seat being located around Daci Temple of the original site of Ye. In the eighth year of the Zhenguan period of the Tang dynasty, the Ye county seat was established again to govern the Small Town (小城). In the Tang dynasty, the county seat lay north outside Qian Gate (乾门) of the South Ye City according to an epitaph. During the earth flattening process, villagers inadvertently excavated a Rong tomb of the tenth year of the Kaiyuan period about 500 meters northwest of Maxinzhuang village (马辛庄), Linzhang county. The epitaph claims, “The burial ground is located in the wild plain 1 li west of Yonggu village (永固村) to the west of Ye. It is the old land of Wei and Qi and boasts rows of trees that form the borderline.” This Ye city is simply the county seat of the same name in the Tang dynasty. Back in the 1960s, villagers who were engaged in digging a well south of Liutaichang village (刘太昌村, southeastern part of South Ye City), unexpectedly discovering Cheng Jiongtan’s (成迥坦) tomb of the 13th year of the Dali period of the Tang. The epitaph says that the deceased is buried ten li southeast of the Ye county seat within the South Ye City. Also, the epitaph mentions, “The city adjoins the Mount Hua to the west and the Zhang River to the north. Parapets on the city wall look rugged and craggy while the river gurgles along the city.” Draw one line from the tomb to the site 10 li northwest of the tomb and the other line from the tomb to the east. These lines intersect west by north of Qian Gate. That is the exact location of the Ye county seat. Relevant literature indicates that in the Sui and Tang dynasties, the Ye county seat was 50 steps away from the west wall of the ancient Ye relic site. The “Geographical Record (地理志)” chapter in volume 39 of Old Book of Tang (旧唐书)30 says, “In the early years of his reign, Emperor Yangdi (炀帝) set up Ye county at Daci Temple of the old Ye city. The present-​day small county seat was established in the eighth year of the Zhenguan period.” In the fifth year (1073) of the Xining

Introduction  13 period of the Northern Song epoch, Ye county was abolished and a town of the same name was established under Linzhang county. The “Geographical Record (地理志)” chapter in volume 86 of History of Song (宋史) says, “In the fifth year of the Xining period, Ye county was incorporated [into the Linzhang county].”31 Tang and Song dynasties’ Ye county [town] was located southwest of the present-​day Yezhen village; after the Yuan dynasty, Yezhen village was moved slightly northwest. The “Geographical Record (地理志)” chapter in volume 2 of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture says, “Yezhen village is located 30 li northeast of the prefecture.” Since the Zhangde prefectural seat is located at Anyang and the old site of Ye is situated 36 li northeast of Anyang, Yezhen village should lie west of that old site. Na Xin (纳新) said in A Record of Visits to Antiquities of Heshuo (河朔访古记) that there were two villages, Yecheng (邺城) and Nanyecheng (南邺城). Nanyecheng seemed to be located on the old site of South Ye City and Yecheng was about three li northwest of Nanyecheng. The “Miscellaneous Writings (杂志)” chapter in volume 9 of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture says that there were Beiyecheng village and Nanyecheng village. Beiyecheng seemingly points to the Yezhen village. In the Yuan and Ming dynasties, Yezhen village was 1.5 li west of the old site of Golden Phoenix Terrace. In the Qing dynasty, Nanyecheng village fell into oblivion and Yezhen village was moved to the west wall of North Ye City south of Three Terraces. The Ye county seat of the Sui and Tang dynasties was 50 steps west of Qian Gate and in the Yuan and Ming dynasties, Yezhen village was relocated more than one li away from the west city wall of the old Ye site. And it is located northwest of the present-​day Yezhen village. Obviously, the Ye town or Yezhen village from the Song to the Ming dynasty and the present-​day Yezhen village are not situated at the same location. For this reason, it is incorrect to mark the old site of Ye city as 1.5 li southeast or east of the present-​day Yezhen village. The chief reason is that the location of Ye town/​Yezhen village has changed several times to this day. As a matter of fact, the exact location of the relic site varies even if the Linzhang county seat is taken as the benchmark. Eastern Wei set up Linzhang county within Ye city; later Emperor Wudi of Zhou moved the county to 20 li east of Ye. In the tenth year of the Kaihuang period of the Sui dynasty, a part of the county territory was cut off as Changle county (长乐县). In the tenth year of the Daye period, the Linzhang county seat was built. In the Northern Song epoch, Ye county was incorporated into Linzhang county. In the 18th year of the Hongwu period of the Ming dynasty, “The Zhang River submerged the county seat and the residents were relocated to Liwang village (理王村) 18 li northeast of the original site upon the county magistrate’s memorial.”32 Comprehensive Gazetteer of the Great Ming and Records of Famous Places of Interest still insist on the previous opinion that the city site is located “20 li west of Linzhang county.” Records of Famous Places and Spots also says, “The city was downgraded to a town in the Song dynasty.” This opinion is not right because the city and the town of the same name are two dissimilar concepts. They have different locations and different times of establishment.

14 Introduction Actually, Yang Shoujing’s view is quite accurate. In modern geographic terms, the relic site is located between 36°8′ and 36°12′ E longitude, 114°20′ and 114°23′ N latitude. With a total area of about 20 square km, the relic site is approximately 18.5 km southwest of the present-​day Linzhang county, Hebei province, about 18 km northeast of Anyang city, Henan province, and 4 km west of Wucheng Station on the Jingguang Railway. Overall, the relic site is situated east of the present-​day Yezhen village, Linzhang county or at Santai village, Linzhang county.

IV.  Four stages of research on Ye Today there is no trace of the bailey, palace, official mansion, street, terrace, garden, or pool, but for Golden Phoenix Terrace, a corner of Bronze Bird Terrace, and several pedestals scattered inside and outside the southern and northern urban areas. The villages and fields show us that the famous ancient city disappeared a long time ago, but its remains have proved fascinating to generations of visitors. From ancient times, scholars have tried to make it clear how Ye prospered and declined. Their textual research involves the following periods: (1) Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties. (2) Sui, Tang, Song, and Yuan dynasties. (3) Ming and Qing dynasties and the Republic period. (4) the period from the founding of New China to the present. In the Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties, there was a large body of literature about the city and its main sights. The literature mainly includes poems (诗), rhapsodies (赋), and prose (文), and especially records (记). In Rhapsody on Ascending the Terrace (登台赋), Cao Zhi (曹植) depicted around ten sights such as Storied Terrace (层台), Office of the Counselor-​ in-​Chief (太府),33 halls for dukes and princes (圣德殿), high city gates and hall gates (高门), Twin Watch Towers (双阙), sumptuous pavilion piercing the sky (中天之华观), glimpsing elevated passageways over the west city wall (西城飞阁), Zhang River ripples gently nearby (临漳水之长流), and Orchard (果园) on the Zhang River. Similarly, Zuo Si described in Wei Capital Rhapsody sights such as Zhang River (漳水), Ye’s Water Conservancy Projects (邺下水利工程), Three Terraces (三台), West Garden (西苑), Hall of Literary Prosperity (文昌殿), Dew Court (路寝), Hall of Hearing Political Decisions (听政殿), Government Office (官署), streets and lanes (街巷), and the Noble Quarter (戚里). Cao Pi’s Normative Discourses (典论),34 Cao Zhi’s “Poem of a Tour to West Garden (游西苑诗),” and Wang Can’s (王粲), Ying Chang’s (应玚), and Chen Lin’s (陈琳) “Pagoda Tree Rhapsody (槐赋)” are all focused on the Ye city and relevant sights. Besides that, there are historical books and miscellaneous writings such as Wang Can’s Records of Late Han Heroes (汉末英雄记),35 Wang Shen’s (王沈) The Book of Wei (魏书), Yu Huan’s (鱼豢) Sketch of Wei (魏略),36 Chen Shou’s (陈寿) Records of the Three Kingdoms, Kong Yan’s (孔衍) Annals of the Han and Wei Dynasties (汉魏春秋), Sima Biao’s (司马彪) The Continued Book of Han (续汉书)37 and Spring and Autumn Annals of Nine Provinces (九州春秋), Guo Ban’s (郭颁)

Introduction  15 Account of Famous Remarks of Wei and Jin Dynasties (魏晋世语), Yin Dan’s (阴澹) Records of Wei (魏纪), several scholars’ The Book of Jin (晋书),38 Tales of Eight Kings of the Jin Dynasty (晋八王故事). Today most of them have been lost, but some extant fragments can still tell us what they are really about. The “Palace (宫)” chapter in volume 24 of Writings for Elementary Instruction says, “Wei built a palace in the Ye city. For its specifics, see Sketch of Wei.” So, it is presumed that Sketch of Wei should definitely give details of the palace. With regard to the Ye city in Later Zhao and Former Yan, the relevant texts mainly include Tian Rong’s (田融) Records of Later Zhao (后赵录) [aka Book of Zhao (赵书)], Collected Writings of the Two Shis (二石集) or Biographies of Two Shis (二石传)], Wang Du’s (王度) Tales of Two Shis (Shi Le and Shi Hu), and Account of Two Shis’ Reigns (二石伪治时事). The “Ancient and Present Official Histories (古今正史)” chapter of Generalities on History (史通)39 says that “Palace Aide to the Grand Mentor (太傅长史)40 Tian Rong (田融), Director for Bureau of Provisions under the Department of State Affairs (尚书库部郎)41 Guo Zhongchan (郭仲产), and North Administrator under the Leader of Court Gentlemen (北中郎参军)42 Wang Du composed works about events during Two Shis’ reigns, which were collected into Records of Ye Capital (邺都记), Account of Zhao (赵记).” Moreover, Lu Hui’s (陆翙) Record of Ye (邺中记), Fan Heng’s (范亨) Book of Yan (燕书) (about Murong Jun), Cui Hong’s (崔鸿) Annals of Sixteen States (十六国春秋), and Li Daoyuan’s (郦道元) The Commentary on the Waterway Classic (水经注). As the sole well-​ preserved text in this regard, the “Turbid Zhang River” chapter in volume 10 of The Commentary on the Waterway Classic depicts the Ye capital of Cao-​ Wei and Later Zhao at length. Lu Hui once served Later Zhao and later acted as Assistant to the Director of Education (国子监助教)43 of the Eastern Jin epoch. By combining his own experience and collected written records, he wrote Record of Ye in two volumes. This book, which is dedicated to affairs in Shi Hu’s court, was lost after the Song dynasty. Chen Zhensun (陈振孙) mentioned the anonymous single-​volume Record of the Ye City (邺中记) in [Chen] Zhizhai’s Annotated Catalog (直斋书录解题).44 Is this the same book as Lu Hui’s work? What’s the relationship between these two books? It is a pity that both books have been lost except for some short depictions, and so a comparative study is unlikely to be conducted. Record of Ye collected by Yuan-​ dynasty scholar Tao Zongyi’s (陶宗仪) in Boundaries of Stories (说郛)45 is the earliest of all extant editions. However, that edition only contains a few pages and is far from complete. Qing scholars made the most notable achievements in this aspect. Lu Xixiong (陆锡熊), Ji Yun (纪昀) et al. compiled Complete Books of the Four Branches of Learning (四库全书),46 “The editors collected many relevant materials from Yongle Canon (永乐大典) and collated the various editions, obtaining 74 notes that exclude those repetitions. As a result, a single-​volume new edition came out. Some new notes were added to the end of the records of Shi Hu from Lu Hui’s original work as an appendix. This edition provides accurate details and thus has undeniable importance.” [Please note that there are other editions such as the Juzhenban edition (聚珍版本),

16 Introduction the Xu baichuan xuehai edition (续百川学海本), and the Rongyuan congshu edition (榕园丛书本).] Besides, Annals of Sixteen States includes records about the city in the Later Zhao and Former Yan and most of the records coincide with the “Records (载记)” of The Book of Jin and some other sources. It’s a pity that none of Northern Qi scholar Yang Lengjia’s (杨楞伽) Stories of the Ye Capital (邺都故事), Sui-​dynasty scholar Wang Shao’s (王劭) Records of Qi (齐志), or Cui Zifa’s (崔子发) Annals of Qi (齐纪) is available today, although there are records of buildings such as palaces and halls in these books. From the Sui through the Yun dynasty, the Ye site had been desolate, with dead trees and a terrace being half-​engulfed by the yellow sand. Numerous men of letters arrived, composing a slew of poems to reminisce about the past prosperity of the city. Sui-​dynasty poet Duan Junyan’s (段君彦) “Pass by the Ye City (过邺城诗),” Emperor Taizong of Tang’s (唐太宗) “Ascend the Three Terraces to Express My Ambition (登三台言志),” Li Baiyao’s (李百药) “A Poem of Wei Capital (赋得魏都诗),” Wen Tingyun’s (温庭筠) “Walk by Chen Lin’s Tomb (过陈琳墓诗),” Cen Sen’s (岑参) “Ascend the Ancient Ye City (登古邺城诗),” Meng Yunqing’s (孟云卿) “Nostalgia for the Ye City (邺城怀古),” Ming-​ dynasty scholar Wang Xiangchun’s (王象春) “Mount the Bronze Bird Terrace (登铜雀台诗).” Many gazetteers and encyclopedias also have such depictions, including Writings for Elementary Instruction (初学记),47 Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚),48 Maps and Gazetteer of the Provinces and Counties in the Yuanhe Period (元和郡县图志),49 Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era (太平御览),50 Gazetteer of the World During the Taiping Period (太平寰宇记),51 and A Gazetteer of the Nine Provinces from the Yuanfeng Era (元丰九域志).52 In the early Tang period, Pei Shiju (裴世矩) compiled Tales of Ye Capital (邺都故事) in ten volumes. Pei Shiju was born in Eastern Wei and served as Military Assistant to the Governor of Sizhou (司州牧兵曹从事)53 of Northern Qi, Instructor of King Gaoping (高平王文学),54 Attendant Gentlemen of the Ministry of Personnel and Ministry of Revenue, and Gentleman Attendant at the Palace Gate (吏部、民部侍郎及黄门侍郎)55 of the Sui dynasty, and Minister of Civil Affairs (民部尚书) of the Tang dynasty among other titles. In the early Tang time, he compiled History of Qi (齐史) and participated in compiling Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters; in the mid-​Tang time, Ma Wen (马温) wrote Stories of Ye Capital in two volumes; in addition, there were other books like Tang-​dynasty scholar Liu Gongrui’s (刘公锐) three-​volume A New Record of Ye City (邺城新记) and the anonymous single-​volume Record of the Ye City. In the Song dynasty, there were Tales of Ye (邺城故事), Stories of the Ye City (邺中故事), Record of Ye County (邺县记), Illustrated Gazetteer of Xiangzhou Prefecture (相州图经), Illustrated Gazetteer of Ye County (邺县图经), Li Hui’s (李回) 12-​volume Gazetteer of Xiangtai Prefecture (相台志), and Yuan-​ dynasty anonymous Continued Gazetteer of Xiangtai Prefecture (相台续志). Gazetteer of Xiangtai Prefecture depicts the palaces of the Ye capital in a systematic manner and Continued Gazetteer of Xiangtai reveals the preservation of those famous sights of Ye and the changes of the relic site during the Song

Introduction  17 and Yuan dynasties. This gazetteer and its sequel have been lost, but their main materials can be found in Yongle Encyclopedia and Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture. Besides, Song-​dynasty scholar Yang You’s (杨槱) Gazetteer of Linzhang County (临漳县志) is already lost and what this book may indicate remains unknown. In the Yuan dynasty, Nai Xian (乃贤), aka Na Xin (纳新) wrote A Record of Visits to Antiquities of Heshuo. This book has been transmitted for ages and is considered to be very valuable. From the Ming dynasty to the Republic period, the textual research mainly focused on three points: First, textual research. In the Jiajing period of the Ming dynasty, Cui Xian (崔铣) compiled Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture or Buildings of Ye (邺乘) based on Gazetteer of Xiangtai and Continued Gazetteer of Xiangtai. The “Palaces of Ye” chapter in volume 8 of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture copies those books’ relevant depictions. General Gazetteer of Henan (河南总志) of the Chenghua period of the Ming dynasty and Gazetteer of Linzhang County of the Zhengde period, Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Qianlong period of the Qing dynasty, Hong Liangji’s (洪亮吉) Gazetteer of Sixteen States (十六国疆域志), and Gazetteer of Linzhang County of the Guangxu period of the Qing dynasty also give us accounts about the ancient Ye city. In the Ming-​Qing transition, Gu Yanwu (顾炎武) wrote A Record of Royal Residences and Capitals Throughout History (历代宅京记), collecting relevant records of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture. Tao Ting (陶珽) collated an edition of Record of Ye when supplementing his ancestor Tao Zongyi’s Boundies of Stories and Ji Yun provided another edition in the Wuyingdian edition of Complete Books of the Four Branches of Learning (武英殿四库全书); also, Chen Yi (陈毅) compiled “Queshentang edition by Chen of Xiangxiang (湘乡陈氏阙慎堂刊本).” Second, the annotation and collation of The Commentary on the Waterway Classic and completion of plans for restoration of the Ye city. Let’s take the plans in Qing-​ dynasty scholar Wang Shiduo’s (汪士铎) Illustrations to The Commentary on the Waterway Classic (水经注图) (Yanguizhai edition made in the tenth year of the Xianfeng period 咸丰十年晏圭斋刊本) and Collated The Collated Commentary on the Waterway Classic (水经注校) (the edition made in the 31st year of the Guangxu period 光绪三十一年刊本) for example. Both plans embody Qing scholar’s line of thought. Though the plans are not accurate, they have definite historical value. It is fair to assume that their efforts opened up a new research trend of focusing on restoration of the ancient city. Third, academic and archaeological surveys. In Essentials of Geography for Reading History, early Qing-​time scholar Gu Zuyu discussed the historical status of Ye, which marks the advent of modern academic studies. The archaeological research was conducted for the first time in the Republic period. Gu Xieguang (顾燮光) wrote Notes on Visits to Antiquities in Heshuo (河朔访古随笔). In the spring of 1931; the Sinological Institute, Yenching University Chinese Studies Institute (燕京大学国学研究所) organized students and teachers to investigate historic sites in southern and northern Hebei. Hong Ye (洪业) and Gu Jiegang (顾颉刚) also surveyed the city and its environs during their search

18 Introduction for the traces of Qing-​dynasty scholar Cui Shu (崔述) around Daming (大名) and Wei (魏) counties. In 1936, Liu Dunzhen (刘敦桢) et al. at Society for the Study of Chinese Architecture, Chinese Architectural Research Society of National Academy of Beiping (北平研究院营造学社) explored ancient buildings in Henan province and visited the Ye site. In A History of Ancient Chinese Architecture (中国古代建筑史), Liu drew a restoration plan of the Ye city of Cao-​Wei. This realistic plan offers a valuable guide to later studies, thus being cited by Ueda Sanae (上田早苗) and Seong Joo-​dak (成周铎). Besides, Ma Feng (马丰) published “A Report on Surveying Cixian-​based South Xiangtang Temple and Wu’an-​based North Xiangtang Temple and the Surrounding Areas (赴磁县武安县南北响堂寺及其附近工作报告)” [Peking Academy Journal (北平研究院院务汇报), 7, 4 (Jul 1936)] on historical sites in Ye city and its surrounding areas. After the founding of New China, Ye studies became a seminal subject for historical and archaeological research. In December 1979, the Ye site was granted a protected county key historic site status by Linzhang county. It was upgraded to a provincial historic site in July 1982 and further upgraded to a national one in January 1988. In 1957, Yu Weichao (俞伟超) et al. conducted the first survey of the Ye site since the founding of New China, publishing “Record of Excavation of Ye (邺城调查记)” along with “Restoration Plan of Relics Around Ye and North City Wall (邺城附近遗址及北城垣复原图)” [Archaeology (考古), 1 (1963)]. From August 1976 to December 1977, Linzhang County Cultural Center (临漳县文化馆) conducted a survey of the South Ye City and published “Brief Report on the Archaeological Investigation and Excavation of the Ye City (邺城考古调查与钻探发掘简报)” [Cultural Relics of Central China (中原文物), 4 (1983)], with a restoration plan included. In 1979, Linzhang County Cultural Heritage Protection Center (临漳县文物保管所) was founded and conducted archaeological excavations, acquiring several thousand artifacts. In the early 1980s, Xia Nai (夏鼐) decided to launch an archaeological investigation of the Ye city. The Institute of Archaeology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (中国社会科学院考古研究所) and Hebei Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics (河北省文物研究所) established a joint team to survey the Ye site thoroughly in the autumn of 1983. After 30-​ odd years’ research, they have published the following papers: “Preliminary Report of the Excavation of the Relic Site of North Ye City of Linzhang, Hebei Province (河北临漳邺北城遗址勘探发掘简报)” [Archaeology (考古), 7 (1990)]; “Prospection and Excavation of the Ruins Site of South Ye City of Linzhang County, Hebei Province (河北临漳县邺南城遗址勘探与发掘)” [Archaeology (考古), 3 (1997)]; “Excavation of the Relic Site of Zhuming Gate in South Ye City, Linzhang County, Hebei Province (河北临漳县邺南城朱明门遗址的发掘)” [Archaeology (考古), 1 (1996)]; Guo Yifu’s (郭义孚) “A Study of the Restoration of Zhuming Gate of South Ye City (邺南城朱明门复原研究)” [Archaeology (考古), 1 (1996)]; CASS Archaeology Institute Scientific Experiment Research Center’s “North

Introduction  19 Dynasties Iron Armor Unearthed at South Ye City (邺南城出土的北朝铁 甲胄)” [Archaeology (考古), 1 (1996)]; “Discovery and Excavation of the Eastern Wei and Northern Qi Dynasties Pagoda Foundations at the Buddhist Temple in the Yecheng City Site of Linzhang County, Hebei Province (河北临漳县邺城遗址东魏北齐佛寺塔基的发现与发掘)” [Archaeology (考古), 10 (2003)]; “Discovery and Excavation of the Zhaopengcheng Northern Dynasties Buddhist Temple in the Ye City Site of Linzhang County, Hebei (河北临漳县邺城遗址赵彭城北朝佛寺遗址的勘探与发掘)” [Archaeology (考古), 7 (2010)]; “Discovery and Excavation of Beiwuzhuang Buddhist Statue Burial Pit in the Ye City Site of Linzhang County, Hebei Province (河北临漳县邺城遗址北吴庄佛教造像埋藏坑的发现与发掘)” [Archaeology (考古), 4 (2012)]; “A Survey of the Buddhist Temple at Zhaopeng­ cheng Village and Buddhist Statue Burial Pit at Beiwuzhuang Village in the Ye City Site of Linzhang County, Hebei Province (河北邺城遗址赵彭城北朝佛寺和北吴庄佛教造像埋葬坑)” [Archaeology (考古), 7 (2013)]; “Excavation of the Buddhist Temple Remains Within the Ye City at Zhaopengcheng Village in Linzhang County, Hebei from 2010 through 2011 (河北临漳邺城遗址赵彭城北朝佛寺2010–​2011年的发掘)” [Archaeology (考古), 12 (2013)]; etc. Archaeological research on the city lasted from 1983 to 2013. Prior to 2000, the research mainly focused on North Ye City; after 2000, the focus of the research gradually shifted towards South Ye City. The following period from 2008 to 2014 witnessed excavation of the middle sections of the north and west walls of North Ye City. In 2009, the foundation was laid for Yecheng Museum. As 2013 marks the opening of the museum and the 30th anniversary of the inception of the archaeological research on Ye city, the Institute of Archaeology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Hebei Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics, and Linzhang County Cultural Relics and Tourism Bureau co-​compiled Selected Cultural Objects of Ye City (邺城文物菁华) and Archaeological Discoveries and Researches on the Ye City (邺城考古发现与研究). Both monographs were published by Cultural Relics Press (文物出版社) in 2014. From August to December 2019, “Living in Harmony: Exhibition of Buddhist Statues of Ye City at Linzhang (和合共生—​—​临漳邺城佛造像展)” occurred in the Beijing-​based National Museum, attracting attention within China and elsewhere. In addition, there are other academic works such as Qiao Wenquan’s (乔文泉) “Northern Dynasties’ Stone Statues Unearthed Nearby South Ye City (邺南城附近出土北朝石造像)” [Cultural Relics (文物), 9 (1980)]; Xu Guangyi’s (徐光冀) “Prospection and Excavation of the Relic Site of Ye and the Underlying Meanings (邺城遗址的勘探发掘及其意义)” [Cultural Relics Age (文物春秋), initial issue (1989)]; “On the Reconstruction of the Layout of Cao-​Wei Period Yecheng City (曹魏邺城的平面复原研究)” [Treatises on Chinese Archaeology: To the 40th Anniversary of the Founding of the Institute of Archaeology, CASS (中国考古学论丛—​—​中国社会科学院考古所建所40周年纪念), Science Press 科学出版社, 1993]; “New Findings in Archaeological Research of the Ye City

20 Introduction (邺城考古的新收获)” [Cultural Relics Age, 3 (1995)]; Zhang Zixin’s (张子欣) “Bronze Bird Terrace and the Other Two Terraces of Ye (邺城铜雀三台)” [Cultural Relics World (文物天地), 2 (1985)]; Ma Zhongli’s (马忠理) “A Brief Introduction to King Lanling Gao Su’s Life and the Epitaph (北齐兰陵王高肃及其碑文述略)” [Cultural Relics of Central China, 2 (1988)]; “A Study of Buddhist Sutra Inscriptions of Northern Qi Nearby the Ye City (邺都近邑北齐佛教刻经初探)” [Studies on the Northern Dynasties’ Rock Sutra Inscription (北朝摩崖刻经研究), Qilu Press 齐鲁书社, 1991]; Wang Fusheng’s (王复生) “Discussing the Unique Urban Infrastructures of Ye According to Unearthed Antiquities (从出土文物话邺城独特的城建设施)”[Northern Dynasties Research (北朝研究), 2 (1996)]; Li Yuqun’s (李裕群) “Rock Grottoes and Sutra Inscriptions of the Yecheng Area (邺城地区石窟与刻经)” [Acta Archaeologica Sinica (考古学报), 4 (1997)], Zhu Yanshi’s (朱岩石) “The Capital City Ye of the Eastern Wei and the Northern Qi (东魏北齐邺南城内城之研究)” [Between Han and Tang: Visual and Material Culture in a Transformative Period (汉唐之间的视觉文化与物质文化), Cultural Relics Press 文物出版社, 2003]; “Determining Temporal Characteristics of the Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties from the Royal Gardens of Ye (论邺城皇家园林反映的魏晋南北朝时代特征)” [Tracing and Exploring: Symposium at the 45th Birth Anniversary of Handan Cultural Heritage Protection Research Institute (追溯与探索—​—​ 纪念邯郸市文物保护研究所成立四十五周年学术研讨会论文集), Science Press 科学出版社, 2007]; He Liqun’s (何利群) “Study on Buddhism of Ye City in the Eastern Wei and Northern Qi (东魏北齐时期的邺城佛教研究)” [Tracing and Exploring: Symposium at the 45th Birth Anniversary of Handan Cultural Heritage Protection Research Institute (追溯与探索—​—​ 纪念邯郸市文物保护研究所成立四十五周年学术研讨会论文集), Science Press 科学出版社, 2007]; Zhang Jinlong’s (张金龙) “Studies on the Establishment of South Ye City of the Eastern Wei and Northern Qi 东魏北齐邺南城建 置杂考)” [Journal of Literature and History (文史), 3 (2010)]; Shen Lihua’s (沈丽华) “A Probe into the Urban Space and Burial Ground of Ye in the Cao-​ Wei (曹魏邺城都城空间与葬地初论)” [A Collection of Young Historians’ Works (芳林新叶—​—​历史考古青年论集), Shanghai Chinese Classics Publishing House 上海古籍出版社, 2019)]. In 2002, the discovery of the pagoda pedestal of the Eastern Wei and Northern Qi in South Ye City was ranked among China’s Top 10 New Archaeological Findings. Zhang Zixin, former head of Linzhang County Cultural Heritage Protection Center, composed Records of the Archaeological Exploration of Ye City (邺城考古札记) (China Culture and History Press 中国文史出版社, 2013), summing up the past decades’ archaeological achievements in the city. As a crucial means to recapture the true picture of ancient Ye, archaeological research has made considerable achievements. Even so, there is still a long way to go. In former Ye City Archaeology Team Head, Xu Guangji’s (徐光冀) words, “After nearly 30 years’ effort, we have essentially clarified the plan layout of the city. However, there is little knowledge of the inner structure of the city because most cultural heritages have been engulfed by the sand deposit. Perhaps it will take us 50 or 100 years to thoroughly understand the

Introduction  21 inner city.” [Refer to Chinese Social Sciences Today (中国社会科学报) (Beijing), Aug 17, 2012, A-​04]. In the years to come, the city will remain a hot focus for archaeological studies in China and beyond. In late 2009, a large tomb west of Anyang was excavated and claimed to be Gao Mausoleum of Cao Cao, which caused considerable debate in China and beyond. As Cao Cao’s tomb involves the Ye city, the city drew much more attention than before. In January 2012, the Ye City Archaeology Team unearthed 2,895 Buddhist statues of the Eastern Wei and Northern Qi at the north side of the southern embankment of the Zhang River north of Beiwuzhuang village (北吴庄村), Xiwen township (习文乡), Linzhang county. Archaeological excavation of the Ye city therefore became a hot topic throughout the whole society. Chinese Social Sciences Today published a special report titled “A Probe into the Mystery of the Millennia-​old Ye City (千年邺城探秘)” on three full pages on August 17, 2012, detailing the historical status, archaeological achievements and relevant protection and planning of the Ye city. The historical research on Ye emerged in China’s reform and opening-​up period, but its real origin dates back to the criticism of Legalists and Confucians in the late Cultural Revolution. In 1974, Ximen Bao was regarded as a Legalist as the Confucian-​Legalist strife prevailed nationwide. Consequently, the story of how Ximen Bao governed Ye was promoted everywhere. No wonder some scholars started focusing on the city. And as the tombs of Eastern Wei and Northern Qi were discovered, it aroused more and more attention. After 1976, Ye city became a hot academic subject. Qin Peiheng (秦佩珩) published “Studies on Ye Capital (邺都掇琐)” [Journal of Zhengzhou University (Philosophy and Social Sciences Edition) (郑州大学学报), 4 (1978)] and “A Study of Ye (邺城考)” [News Report of Henan Historical Relics (河南文博通讯), 1 (1979)] the following year. From then on, there were a growing number of relevant papers, such as Zhang Zhi’s (张之) “Analyzing the Rise and Fall of Ye (邺城兴废考)” [Zhongzhou Today & Yesterday (中州今古), 3 (1983)]; Zhang Pingyi’s (张平一) “Introduction to Ancient Capital Ye (古都邺城述略)” [Hebei Academic Journal (河北学刊), 1 (1983)]; “Studying the Prosperity and Decline of Ancient Capital Ye from Historical Literature (从文献看古 都邺城的兴废)” [Cultural Relics Age, Initial Issue (1989)]; Zhou Yiliang’s (周一良) “Some Thoughts After Reading Record of Ye (读)” [Inner Mongolia Social Sciences (内蒙古社会科学), 4 (1984)]; Gao Min’s (高敏) “On the Relationship between Ye’s Historical Importance and Feudal Separation (略论邺城的历史地位与封建割据的关系)” [Academic Journal of Zhongzhou (中州学刊), 3 (1989)]; Jiang Dahuang’s (江达煌) “Discussion on the Integration of Yin and Ye and Two Ye Cities as well as South Ye City of Eastern Wei (论殷邺一体与两个古邺城—​—​兼及东魏邺南城)” [Northern Dynasties Research (北朝研究), 1 (1990)];” Zou Yilin’s (邹逸麟) “Discussing the Historical-​Geographical Context of Ye City’s Rise and Its Position in Ancient Capital History (试论邺都兴起的历史地理背景及其在古都史上的地位)” [Journal of Chinese Historical Geography (中国历史地理论丛), 1 (1995)].

22 Introduction These papers mainly focused on the development trajectory and status of Ye. Especially, famous historian Zhou Yiliang (周一良) wrote Reading Notes on the History of the Wei, Jin, and Northern and Southern Dynasties (魏晋南 北朝史札记)56 between the late 1970s and the early 1980s. In Zhou’s book, there is a chapter “Notes on Book of Wei (魏书札记)” featuring a note “three cities, namely Zhongshan (中山), Ye (邺), and Xindu (信都)” that accentuates the importance of Ye; the following “Reading Record of Ye (读)” depicts how important a role the city had played in history, accompanied by academic letters from Tian Yuqing (田余庆) and Zhu Zongbin (祝总斌). Also, Gao Min’s paper has some remarkable characteristics. All in all, these various papers are of enormous value. Examining relevant literature forms the bedrock of studies in this vein. A Qing scholar compiled Record of Ye mainly from Excerpts of Books in the Northern Hall (北堂书钞),57 Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters, Writings for Elementary Instruction, Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era, Gazetteer of the World During the Taiping Period, and Yongle Canon. In 1984, Feng Junshi (冯君实) published “Supplements to Record of Ye (邺中记辑补)” in Journal of Ancient Books Collation and Studies (古籍整理研究学刊) using A Record of Royal Residences and Capitals Throughout History. Later on, Huang Huixian (黄惠贤) published “Annotations to Record of Ye (辑校邺中记)” [Historical Materials on Wei-​Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties and Sui and Tang Dynasties (魏晋南北朝隋唐史资料), 9, 10 (Dec 1988)] by Office for Studies on Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties, Sui and Tang Dynasties, History School, Wuhan University) based on The Commentary on the Waterway Classic, Six Rubbings of Bai (白氏六帖), A Record of Visits to Antiquities of Heshuo, and Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture. After more than a decade’s effort, Xu Zuomin (许作民) incorporated 14 ancient texts into Annotations and Commentaries of Lost Records of Ye Capital (邺都佚志辑校注, Zhongzhou Ancient Books Press 中州古籍出版社, 1996), tapping into nearly all relevant materials. Ye city’s layout and its historical position have been a hot topic of academic studies. In 1939, Chen Yinke (陈寅恪) composed Draft Concise Discussion of the Origins of the Sui—​Tang System of Institutions (隋唐制度渊源略论稿).58 The “Ritual (礼仪)” chapter includes an appendix called “Capital Buildings (都城建筑),” in which Chen posited the Ye—​Daxing—​Chang’an medieval Chinese capital lineage system. Decades later, the issue has been studied more elaborately in papers such as Yu Weichao’s (俞伟超) “(Development Stages of Ancient China’s Capital Planning 中国古代都城规划的发展阶段性)” [Cultural Relics, 2 (1990)]; Wu Gang’s (吴刚) “Radical Change in China’s City Development: Ye City of Cao-​Wei and the City Cluster of Southern Dynasties (中国城市发展的质变：曹魏的邺城和南朝城市群)” [Historical Review (史林), 1 (1995)]; Zhu Hairen’s (朱海仁) Several Characteristics of the Planar Layout of North Ye City of Cao-​Wei, Luoyang of Northern Wei, South Ye City of Eastern Wei, and Northern Qi (略论曹魏邺北城、北 魏洛阳城、东魏北齐邺南城平面布局的几个特点)” [Guangzhou Cultural

Introduction  23 Heritage Archaeology Institute’s (广州市文物考古所) A Collection of Cultural Heritages of Guangzhou (广州文物考古集), Cultural Relics Press 文物出版社, 1998]; Wang Weikun’s (王维坤) “Exploring the Construction of Ancient Chinese Capitals and the Origin of the Li-​ Fang System (试论中国古代都城的构造与里坊制的起源)” [Journal of Chinese Historical Geography, 1 (1999)]; On the Study of the Ancient Chinese and Japanese Capital Cities in the 20th Century (论20世纪的中日古代都城研究) [Journal of Literature, History and Philosophy (文史哲), 4 (2002)]; Qin Jianming’s (秦建明) “Mystery of the High Terraces in the Northwest of China’s Ancient Capitals (中国古代都城西北高台建筑之谜)” [Relics and Museology (文博), 1 (1999)]; Cheng Yi’s (程义) “On the Design, Layout and Influence of Cao-​Wei Ye-​Bei City (试论邺北城的设计思想、布局与影响)” [Journal of Northwest University (Social Science) (西北大学学报), 1 (2001)]; Guo Jiqiao’s (郭济桥) “The Layout of the Central Government Office in Yecheng City at Cao-​Wei (曹魏邺城中央官署布局初探)” [Yindu Journal (殷都学刊), 2 (2002)]. Famous historical geographer Tan Qixiang (谭其骧) said at the Chinese Ancient Capital Symposium (中国古都学术讨论会) in 1984, “Ye played a crucial role in Chinese history of ancient capitals. More clearly put, Ye mattered more than Yangzhou. This city should be included in the list of China’s Top 6 Ancient Capitals.” See Wei Jiaxiong’s (卫家雄) “Overview of Historical Geography in 1984 (一九八四年历史地理学研究概述)” [Trends of Recent Researches on the History of China (中国史研究动态), 10 (1985)]. Zou Yilin also expressed a similar opinion in the aforesaid paper. To be honest, the far-​flung influence of Ye city is too obvious to ignore. Guo Husheng (郭湖生) concluded in “Reform in the Palace City System from Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties to the Sui and Tang Dynasties and the Palace City System of Heijo-​kyo (魏晋南北朝至隋唐宫室制度沿革—​ —​兼论日本平城京的宫室制度)” (Taipei: Kongjian Press 空间出版社, 1997) that the palace city layout of Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties should be parallelism-​based and that this layout was not replaced by the central axis symmetry until the South Ye City of North Qi, and that it was officially abandoned in the Sui and Tang dynasties. Besides, according to his opinion, Heijo palace seems more like an imperial palace of the Southern and Northern Dynasties. He published “On the Layout System of Ye City (论邺城制度)” [Architect (建筑师), 95 (2000)], summing up the development characteristics of the capital city about 700 years from Cao-​ Wei to Later Liang of Five Dynasties: (1) Dongxi Street in front of the palace directly touches East Gate and West Gate, dividing the city into two halves and the palace city connects the north city wall to the north while the neighborhood-​quarter (坊里), government office (衙署), and market (市) are all located in the south. (2) Ritual Hall and Inner Court stand in parallel, each leading a cluster of halls and having its own entrance and exit. He finally concluded that Ye had influenced the capitals of Chinese dynasties Northern Wei, Eastern Wei, and Northern Qi, as well as the ancient capitals in Japan and other neighboring countries.

24 Introduction As such studies drew increasing attention, overseas academics conducted some beneficial exchanges. In May 1987, Tanikawa Michio (谷川道雄) and Yoshikawa Tadao (吉川忠夫), professors at Kyoto University, Ueda Sanae, professor at Nara Women’s University, Yasuda Jiro (安田二郎), professor at Tohoku University, Nakamura Keiji (中村圭尔), professor at Osaka City University, Takagi Satomi (高木智见), part-​time teacher at Mie University, and some Chinese scholars conducting a joint research study. Based on this study, Tanikawa Michio compiled Nittyuu Kokusai Kyoudou Kennkyuu: Rokutyou Seiji Bunnka ni Okeru Tiiki Syakai no Sayou (日中国际共同研究：地域社会在六朝政治文化上所起的作用) (Kyoto: Genbunsha 玄文社, March 1989), including Ueda Sanae’s paper “Gokann makki no Yeti to Weigunn (后汉末期的邺地与魏郡).” In September 1988, Historical Association of Wei-​Jin and Southern and Northern Dynasty of China, Hebei Provincial Federation of Philosophy and Social Sciences, and Hebei History Society held “the Second National History Symposium on Northern Dynasties,” focusing on the history and the Ye site. Some papers were collected into Historical Studies on Ye City and Northern Dynasties (邺城暨北朝史研究) (Hebei People’s Publishing House 河北人民出版社, 1990). This collection includes Huang Huixian’s (黄惠贤) “A Study on Three Terraces of Bronze Bird in the Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties (魏晋南北朝时期邺都铜雀三台考),” Guo Li’an’s (郭黎安) “Geographical Factors Behind Ye Capital’s Rise and Fall in the Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties (魏晋南北朝邺都兴废的地理原因),” Ma Zhibing’s (马志冰) “The Historical Cause for Ye’s Rise in the Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties (魏晋南北朝时代邺都兴起的历史原因),” Jiang Dahuang’s (江达煌) “Major Constructions and Destructions of the Ye City in History (邺城的几次重大营建与破坏),” and Liu Yan’s (刘岩) “Economic, Cultural and Urban Construction of Ye in Its Prosperous Years (盛时邺城的经济文化与城市建设).” In April 1991, the Third National Symposium on Jian’an Literature took place in Handan. At the time, scholars mainly discussed the Jian’an literature and surveyed the relic site of the city. As a result, they published New Studies in Jian’an Literature (建安文学新论) (Zhongzhou Ancient Books Press 中州古籍出版社, 1991) involving papers like Fu Gang’s (傅刚) “Analyzing the Literature at Ye (邺下文学论略),” Hu Dalei’s (胡大雷) “A Probe into the Literary Groups of Ye (邺下文学集团考),” and Li Binkai (李彬凯) and Shi Yuntao’s (石云涛) “On the Genesis of Ye City’s Literary Circle (试论邺下文 人集团的形成).” At the Annual Conference of China Society of Ancient Capitals (中国古都学会) in Handan in October 2008, Xu Zuomin’s “Yecheng City, Ye County and Ye Commandery in History (历史上的邺城、邺县和邺郡),” Chen Xinhai’s (陈新海) “Discussion on the Barbarization of Ye City (试论邺城之胡化),” and Zhang Zixin’s (张子欣) “A Comparative Study of the Textual and Archaeological Architectural Layout of Ye City (从文献记载到考古实测看邺城建筑布局的异同)” and other papers were submitted. These new studies contributed well to boosting the studies on Ye.

Introduction  25 Studies on Ye city have become one of the hottest subjects within the international community. Western scholars divided historical cities into different types and concluded that ancient capitals of China, North Korea, South Korea, Japan, Vietnam, etc. are categorized as Sinic cities because these cities demonstrate similar characteristics. Japanese scholars attributed the origin of this city category to Ye of Cao-​Wei. Sekino Tadashi (关野贞) proposed that Chang’an or Ye should be the archetype of Japan’s ancient capitals according to the architectural surveys of many Japanese scholars including himself. In 1902, Ito Chuta (伊东忠太) investigated ancient buildings along the Jinghan Railway. During his journey, this scholar visited Ci county (磁县), crossed the Zhang River, and searched the site of Bronze Bird Terrace at Fenglezhen (丰乐镇) but with no success. So, he went further to Anyang and mistakenly regarded it as the ancient Ye capital. Sekino Tadashi also made many surveys in northern and northeastern China, which enables him to raise the above opinion. Afterwards, Naba Toshizada (那波利贞), Shida Fudomaro (志田不动麿), Miyakawa Hisayuki (宫川尚志), Murata Jiro (村田治郎), Komai Kazuchika (驹井和爱), Akiyama Hideo (秋山日出雄), Kishi Toshio (岸俊男), Tanikawa Michio, Ueda Sanae, and Nakamura Keiji among others followed in the footsteps of the above Japanese scholars. In November 1922, Tokiwa Daijo (常盘大定) et al. investigated Grotto Temple in Xiangtang Mountain (响堂山). In March 1936, a team including Mizuno Seiichi visited South and North Xiangtang Temples, delving into their grottoes. Seiichi Mizuno et al. compiled Complete Works of World Fine Arts (世界美术大全) and Stone Grottoes on Xiangtang Mountain (响堂山石窟), with a photo of the stone dragon in Ye of Cao-​Wei included in Complete Works of World Fine Arts. Judging from this, the Japanese scholars should have visited the Ye site. In 1930, Naba Toshizada published “Tyuugoku no Syuto Keikasi no Kakudo Kara Tou Nagayasu wo Kenntousita (从中国首都规划史の角度探讨唐长安城)” in Kuwahara Hakase no Touyousi no Gironn (桑原博士还历纪念东洋史论丛),59 delving into the evolution of Ye’s city planning and its connection with the layouts of Daxing of the Sui dynasty and Chang’an of the Tang dynasty according to relevant depictions in Record of Trades (考工记)60 and annotations to “Wei Capital Rhapsody” of Wen Xuan or Selections of Refined Literature (文选). Murata Jiro published “Brief Investigation of the City Ye (邺城考略)”61 in [Architectural Researches (建筑学研究), 89 (1938)] and later incorporated it into Capitals in China (中国的帝都) upon revision in 1981. The revised paper, i.e. Chapter 2 of Capitals in China elaborates on the historical trajectory of the ancient city and its bailey, in particular the palaces and halls, government offices, three terraces, and imperial gardens of the Wei Kingdom, Later Zhao, Eastern Wei, and Northern Qi dynasties, exploring why Wei established its capital there and the other dynasties followed suit. Kishi Toshio said, “In Japan, Mr Murata’s paper has become a must-​read for all later scholars.”62 Mr Kishi, an expert in research of ancient Japanese and Chinese capital cities, had attained considerable prominence through his works such as “Nihon no Kodai Kyuto (日本の古代宫都)” [NHK Daigaku Koza (NHK大学讲座), Tokyo: Nippon hoso Shuppan Kyokai, 1981]; “Nihon no Kyuto to Chugoku

26 Introduction no Tojo (日本の宫都と中国の都城)” [Tojo (都城), Tokyo: Shakai Shisosha, 99–​139 (1976)];63 Kodai Kyuto no Tankyu (古代宫都の探究) (Tokyo: Hanawa Shobo 塙书房, 1984); and Tojo no Seitai (都城の生态) volume 9, Nihon no Kodai (日本の古代) (Tokyo: Chuo Koronsha 中央公论社, 1987). Akiyama Hideo published “Nihon Kodai Tojyousei no Gennryu (日本古代都城制の 源流)” [Rekishi Kenkyu (历史研究), Osaka Kyoiku University, 19 (Jun 1981)], thus conducting comparative studies of Fujiwara-​kyo and Ye City, Asuka Palace, and South Palace (the palace of South Ye City). In “Hati Syou Inn Tyou Dou Inn no Sokata (八省院＝朝堂院の祖型)” [Nanba Kyuusi no Kennkyuu (难波宫址の研究), 7 (Mar 1981)], Akiyama Hideo argued that Hasshouin of Fujiwara-​kyo is derived from the court of the palace in South (Ye) City [(邺)南城]. He also published “Nihon Kodai Tojyousei no Gennkei (日本古 代都城制の原型)” [Jyosinn Dai Sigaku (女神大史学), 2 (1982)], restoring the South Ye City and revealing the archetype of the Japanese capital city system. Ueda Sanae examined in Gokann Makki no Yeti to Weigunn (后汉末期的邺 地与魏郡) the conditions for Emperor Wu’s establishment of the capital in Ye and the historical prominence of the capital, concluding that the capital planning not only has “played a key role in the history of Chinese capital cities, but also inspired the layout of both Fujiwara-​kyo and Heijo-​kyo of Japan.” Besides, this scholar painted an illustration named “Touwei Kitaqi no Yejyou Souzou no Fukugenn Zu (东魏、北齐邺京想象复原图).” From the early 20th century, Japanese scholars began studying the Ye city. In the 1920s and 1930s, weighty academic results emerged. Since the 1970s, the city has become a much sought after subject. As Nakamura Keiji said, “From the 1970s, Japanese scholars showed greater interest in the city.” Actually, this academic trend was sparked by Kishi Toshio. Refuting the past opinion that Heijo-​kyo was influenced by Chang’an, he argued that the ancient capital should recognize Fujiwara-​kyo’s city planning as the source of its layout. In his final analysis, he stated that the layout of Heijo-​kyo originated from that of Luoyang or South Ye City of Northern Wei. In the 1980s, Akiyama Hideo therefore formed the opinion that Asuka Palace has nearly the same layout as South Ye Palace (邺南宫), in particular the Hall of the Supreme Ultimacy (太极殿), East and West Halls (东西堂), and Hall of Facing the Sun (朝阳殿), and that the character chao (朝) used here should be replaced by zhao (昭) and Yong Lane (永巷) in terms of Record of Ye and Stories of Ye Capital. Hence, the Hall of Facing the Sun becomes Hall of Brilliant Sunlight (昭阳殿). More specifically put, Asuka Palace was inspired by South Ye Palace and Fujiwara Palace was influenced by Asuka Palace. After analyzing South Ye Palace’s scale, city gates, and government office among other aspects, he concluded that Ye should be similar to Luoyang of the Sui and Tang dynasties.” In 1982, Akiyama Hideo published “Nihon Kodai Tojyousei no Gennkei (日本古代都 城制の原型)” based on Murata’s paper, making the first attempt at restoring South Ye City and North Ye City according to historical texts. With the help of A Record of Royal Residences and Capitals throughout History, he determined important parameters such as city/​bailey scale, outer wall, markets, quarters,

Introduction  27 and neighborhoods (里坊). Also, he located the form and position of South Ye City using historical-​geographical means such as the surrounding water courses and roads. There should be a 20° angle between South Ye City and the south wall of North Ye City, which deviates sharply from the result of the later archaeological survey.”64 To unravel the mysterious origin of the Japanese capital city system, Japanese scholars have long requested that the international academic community pay more attention to the Ye city. On June 10, 1991, Kyodo News (Tokyo) issued an official message Tyuuniti Renngou Hakkutu Yejyou Isi (中 日联合发掘“邺城”遗址) stating that Nara National Research Institute for Cultural Properties (奈良国立文物研究所) and the Institute of Archaeology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences would start the first five-​year-​long joint research study. The Japanese party will assign researchers to excavate the Ye site in cooperation with Chinese researchers. It is said that the city is one of the origins of ancient Japanese capital cities. The main aim of this excavation is to join in the task of “uncovering the origin of Japan’s ancient capitals like Heijo-​kyo.”65 This plan did not come to fruition, but its meaning is unquestionable indeed. In May 2008, Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡锦涛) visited the rebuilt Suzaku-​mon Gate (朱雀门) of Heijo-​kyo during his national trip. Japanese scholars told him that Heijo-​kyo was built imitating Chang’an of the Tang dynasty and Chang’an was built imitating South Ye City of the Eastern Wei and Northern Qi. South Ye City blended together the elements of Luoyang of Northern Wei and North Ye City of Cao-​Wei. Therefore, most Chinese and Japanese scholars reached a consensus that Ye is one of the origins of ancient Japanese capitals. Likewise, Korean scholars focused on the capital system. The National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage of South Korea published a seminal work Gyeongju, the Capital of Silla (庆州王京) (pictorial, 2001; monograph, 2002), making a comparative study of the capital of the Silla kingdom and Ye. Seong Joo-​dak and Seo Jeong-​seog (徐程锡) discussed the similarities between the capital of Baekje and Ye/​Chang’an in “Baegjesi Hyeonjang Josa (百济城址研究)” (Hangang Munhwa Chulpansa 汉江文化出版社, 2002) and “Baekje-​ui Yosae—​Ungjingwa Saba Sidaeleul Jungsimeulo (百济的城郭—​—​ 以熊津、泗沘时代为中心)” [Gogohag Silijeu I (考古学丛书之一), Swieyan Munhwa Hyeobhoe 学研文化社, 2002] respectively. Park Han-​je, professor at Seoul National University, published “Wi, Jin, Nam, Bug Wangjoui Dayanghan Wangjoui Sudo Seontaeggwa Geu Uimi—​Lwoyang gwa Yedu (魏晋南北朝时代各王朝的首都选定及其意义—​—​洛阳与邺都)” [Seoul Daehaggyo Yeogsa Hagsulji (历史学报), 168 (Dec 2000)]. Though Korean scholars cast their curious eyes to Ye very late, their research has shown a promising trend. A growing number of Korean researchers realized that the origin of their nation’s capital system can be accurately traced back only if the development trajectory of its ancient Chinese counterpart is clarified. At first, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean scholars conducted studies individually. But as time went on, cross-​border joint research dominated and aimed to

28 Introduction locate the origin of the East Asian ancient capital system. In August 2014, the Institute of Archaeology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, and other units held an International Symposium on “Archaeology of Ye and East Asia’s Ancient Capitals (东亚古代都城暨邺城考古•历史国际学术会议)” in Handan, Hebei province, bringing together numerous scholars from home and abroad. In August 2016, South Korea’s Chungnam National University held another symposium “Dong Asiaui Godae Sudowa Mudeomdong (东亚古代都城与墓葬).” Obviously, studies on Ye and other East Asian capitals have become a hotly debated topic throughout the international community. I started studying the city back in 1984. Thus far, I have composed many works on this topic: “A Study of Ye City of the Wei, Jin, and Northern Dynasties (魏晋北朝邺城初探)” [Research in Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties (魏晋南北朝史研究), Sichuan Academy of Social Sciences Press 四 川省社会科学院出版社, 1986] at the China Society for History of Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties (中国魏晋南北朝史学会) upon my participation in the first national seminar of its kind in Chengdu; “Rokutyou Tiiki Syakai Kennkyuu no Monndai (六朝地域社会研究の几个问题)” and “Wei Jin Kitatyou You Ji Syosyuu Gironn—​Nann Hoku Tou Sei no Jyosei Keisei no (魏晋北朝幽冀诸州要论—​兼谈南北东西形势の形成)” [Wei Jin Kitatyou You Ji Syosyuu Gironn: Nann Hoku Tou Sei no Jyosei Keisei no (日中国际共同研究：地域社会在六朝政治文化上所起の作用)] after my academic exchange with Japanese scholars such as Tanikawa Michio and our visit to the Ye site in May 1987; “Yecheong Bugdosi Geonseol-​e Gwanhan Yeongu (邺城北城建置考)” [Yeogsaleul Aneun (明知史论), 14, 15 (2004)]) after my preparation for organizing the Second National Northern Dynasties Historical Seminar (全国第二届北朝史学术讨论会) in 1988; “The Writer Circle of Ye During the Jian’an Period (建安年间邺下文学 作家群)” [New Studies in Jian’an Literature (建安文学新论), Zhongzhou Ancient Books Press 中州古籍出版社, 1992] after my joining the Third National Jian’an Literature Seminar (全国第三届建安文学学术讨论会) in 1991; “Ye the Ancient Capital on the Zhang River (漳河畔邺城故都)” [Chinese Literature and History (文史知识), Zhonghua Book Company 中华书局, 7 (1990)], “Transition of Traditional Water Conservancy Projects in Ye (邺下传统水利工程的变迁)” [Seminar on Historical Gazetteers of Water Conservancy of Hebei (河北水利史志论文集), Hebei Science and Technology Press 河北科学技术出版社, 1992], “Jinhan Wangjoui Yeseong Josa (秦汉邺城钩沉)” [Hanhwa Jeoneol (韩华学报), 3 (2004)], “Study on the Architecture of the Capital System of Ye of Cao-​Wei (曹魏邺都城制建筑考)” [Asia Academia (亚洲学术), People’s Publishing House 人民出版社, 2006], “A Study on Relations between the Layout System of Ye and that of Medieval East Asia Capitals (邺与中世纪东亚都城城制系统)” [Asia Academia (亚洲学术), 2007], “Textual Research on Urban Buildings of Yecheng in Later Zhao Dynasty 后赵邺都城制建筑考)” [Hebei Academic Journal (河北学刊), 3 (2008)], “Yecheng: The Mystery of City History Research to China, Asia and the World (邺城—​中国、亚洲、世界城市史研究中的一个谜)” [Historical

Introduction  29 Review (史林), 3 (2009)] “Textual Research on the Capital’s Li-​Fang System in Eastern Wei & Northern Qi Dynasties (东魏北齐邺京里坊制度考)” [Academic Journal of Jinyang (晋阳学刊), 6 (2009)]. Over the past three decades, I have personally visited the Ye site five times. In the spring of 2003, I applied to South Korea Higher Education Consortium Exchange Project for “A Study of Ancient Yecheng: The Investigation of the Origination of Medieval Capital City Construction System in East Asia (古都邺城研究—​—​ 中世纪东亚都城制度探源);” then I obtained a grant to launch a joint study in Seoul, South Korea from August 2003 to 2004, which afforded me the chance to sort out more than two decades’ works and supplemented lots of Japanese and Korean materials. In doing so, I wrote out the draft of this book. After returning to China, I applied for the subsequent study of the project Studies on Restoration of Ye (邺城复原研究). Later on, I supplemented it with other materials, especially relevant artifacts, stone inscriptions, and many pictures. As the report on the excavation of the Grand Tomb at Xigaoxue village (西高穴村) was made public, I compared the discovered real objects with the textual records, writing papers “Identifying the Owner of the Grand Tomb (曹操高陵疑信辨)” [Guangming Daily (光明日报) (Beijing), Jan 26, 2010], “Is the Grand West Tomb in Xigaoxue Village Cao Cao’s Tomb: A Study of the Site, Facing and Type of Gao Mausoleum (西高穴大墓是否为曹操墓—​—​ 高陵地望、朝向与墓葬类型之推证)” [Journal of Renmin University of China (中国人民大学学报), 4 (2010)], “A New Interpretation of Grand Tomb’s Owner (曹操高陵新释证—​—​西高穴大墓形制与物研究)” [Guangming Daily (光明日报) (Beijing), Jul 14, 2011]. In the end, I drew the conclusion that the Tomb should belong to Cao Cao because its structure agrees with the palace layout of Ye of Cao-​Wei. In 1984, I wrote the first academic paper, which marks the beginning of my studies. Now my academic career has gone through 30 years and the efforts of those decades’ work has been incorporated into The Study of Ancient Yecheng—​The Investigation of the Origination of Medieval Capital City Construction System in East Asia (古都邺城研究—​ 中世纪东亚都城制度探源) [Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company 中华书局, 2015]. In 2016, this monograph was granted a major project of the National Social Science Fund of China (中国国家社会科学基金重大项目) under the name of “A Study of Ancient Capitals in East Asia: Historical Evolution of Sinic Cities.” Through the concerted effort of Chinese, Japanese, South Korean, and Vietnamese scholars, I desired to provide a theoretical yet practical work, a modern, scientific monograph of international prestige. A Study of the Ye City in the Wei and Jin Dynasties—​The Origin of the Capital Layouts in Medieval East Asia (I) will be an integral part of my “Studies on Ancient Capitals in East Asia.”

V.  Implications of research on Ye As a matter of fact, studies on the Ye city can not only clarify the origin of the medieval capital system of East Asia, but can even explore the underlying

30 Introduction scientific and artistic value. When establishing capitals, ancient people attached great importance to proper location and interaction between heaven, earth, and humanity, thus leveraging geographical conditions and applying the harmony concept in urban planning, layout design, functional division, and locating and naming of buildings, as well as municipal facilities such as water supply/​sewage systems and urban/​suburban garden architecture. The city can be incorporated into the surrounding water systems and traffic network through water and land transport. Even today this guideline is still inspiring to urban construction. The building construction of the city falls into several steps: First, built palaces and water conservancy projects in and outside the city. Second, built the city walls, dug ponds and channels with the excavated earth used for construction, erected terraces with wasted soil and materials, conducted scientific calculation and integrated planning, took measures such as planting trees along the channels and streets, designed gardens, and dug ponds near the suburbs during the construction process. These actions could improve the urban living environment and regulate the urban water supply. For example, during his reign, Cao Cao focused mainly on protecting the ecological environment and using building materials from the mountain forests of Shangdang (上党) far away. Also, he established sound water conservation systems in and outside the city to prevent the Zhang River from causing floods. When his troops were stationed in Ye, he diverted the Qi River into the Bai Trench. In the tenth year of the Jian’an period, he excavated channels to transport army provisions to support his expedition against the northern Wuhuan (乌桓). “The section from the Hutuo River (呼沱河) to the Gu River (泒水, aka 沙河) is known as Pinglu Channel (平虏渠) and the section from the Ju River (泃河) to the Lu River (潞河) and the sea is referred to as Quanzhou Channel (泉州渠).”66 In the 18th year, he excavated channels to “divert the Zhang River east into the Qing and Huan Rivers to transport provisions.”67 His efforts connected the Yellow River (黄河) and the Hai River (海河), tapping into the two rivers’ estuaries and improving the surrounding ecological environment. Moreover, even the regional center’s traffic conditions and functions of absorption and radiation were improved. Urban development and environmental protection should be integrated to achieve harmony between humans and nature. Ancient Chinese applied the theory of sustainable development in practice unknowingly. From the Later Zhao to the Former Yan, Eastern Wei, and Northern Qi, Ye had witnessed three periods of prosperity and decline, and each time it prospered, the city paid close attention to human–​nature relations. And when the city went into decline, the human–​nature relations would likely be put into jeopardy, as represented by abandoned water conservation projects, shrinking wetlands, increasingly dry climate, decreasing species, deteriorating vegetation, and desolate landscape. Probing into the city will provide us with considerable experience in conducting city planning and dealing with subtle relations between the city and the natural environment, between the resources protection and the economic development.

Introduction  31 The capital system of Ye influenced Beijing of the Ming and Qing dynasties and Hanseong of Baekje. Nowadays Kyoto owes its origin to the influence of the Ye city though it was directly inspired by the urban design of Chang’an, the capital of the Tang dynasty. To this day, Beijing, Seoul, and Kyoto have become metropolises, yet still retained many traditional characteristics such as south–​north central axis, left–​right symmetry, and checkerboard-​shaped street layout. Even when city sprawl spawns new urban areas, these areas are usually scattered as per the traditional layout. Whatever form it may take, urban architecture clings to the time-​honored tradition within the flux of modernization. South Ye City falls into left and right parts and Kyoto also has Sakyo-​ku (左京区) and Ukyo-​ku (右京区). In the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, the main stadium was situated on the northern extension of the traditional central axis, which seems no different from South Ye City built by Eastern Wei or Beijing’s outer city built on the southern extension of its central axis by the Ming dynasty. In a word, the central axis is the benchmark for a city either in the past or the present. The benchmark in question blends tradition and modernity. What about the northern tip of the central axis? In modern times, Beijing designed Olympic Park and Rockery for the international event because they are in tune with the traditional concept in this regard. However, the French designer felt greatly confused about what should be built on the rockery. Finally, the solution was found by reviewing the “human–​nature harmony” tenet of ancient Chinese philosophy. In clearer terms, a large antique sundial could be built as inspired by Tower Equaling the Big Dipper (齐斗楼) lying on the northern tip of the central axis of the Ye capital of Later Zhao and along the same axis line with the main hall—​the Hall of Supreme Militancy (太武殿)—​as well as the Big Dipper constellation. Sima Qian (司马迁), likely the greatest historian of ancient China, said that historical research should explore the relationship between heaven and humanity, and should comprehend the law behind changes in past and present times. With this goal in mind, I have been trying to sum up the unchanging tradition underlying historical changes. In 2015 and 2016, the Chinese government repeatedly emphasized administration of city planning to protect the historic cityscape deep-​rooted in the traditional city system. And behind the capital system lurk a set of traditional thoughts. An extraction of those valuable ideas from the traditional city layout system lies at the core of innovation in city planning and protection. In addition, we should make overall planning of urban buildings and give any city a traditional yet trendy look and imbue it with a unique soul. But actually, city designers and architects may not know clearly the historical lineage of the capital systems of Beijing, Seoul, and Kyoto, despite having dismantled many ancient buildings in the course of urban modernization. Even so, they couldn’t change the traditional capital system; otherwise, these three cities might have vanished. Studying Ye city will not only help us understand the city layout lineage of East Asia and conduct city planning on

32 Introduction a traditional basis, but also enable all urban residents, workers, and visitors to meander the streets and delve into the subtle blend of history and reality. Within cities like Beijing, Seoul, Kyoto, Nara, Gyeongju, Suwon, and Hanoi there are still many ancient sites, including UNESCO world cultural heritage sites such as the Imperial Palace (故宫), Heavenly Altar (天坛), Changdeokgung Palace (昌德宫), Ancestral Temple (宗庙),68 Gyeongju Site of the Silla Kingdom (王京遗址), and Hwaseong Fortress (水原华城), which are related with Ye in terms of architectural tenets and systems. Indeed, the Ancestral Temple System in Seoul is akin to its counterpart in South Ye City of the Eastern Wei and Northern Qi. It is miraculous that such a royal temple that vanished in China long ago remains in good condition in South Korea. Moreover, the totem poles inscribed with “Male Imperator (大将军)” and “Female Imperator (女将军)”69 are the last vestiges of the customs of Northern Qi. All these edifices are cultural wonders no less inviting than those the iconic Egyptian pyramids. To explore the nature, layout, and ritual customs of these edifices, we must first expound their systems and especially their historical trajectory from a system evolution point of view. All this could not be possible without the studies of Ye city. Briefly put, such studies can really help us understand Beijing’s Imperial Palace and other world cultural heritage sites. Besides, such studies enable us to protect and leverage the valuable historical resources of the Imperial Palace. Only when we fully understand the value of these historical heritages will we readily shoulder the task of protecting them.

Notes 1 G William Skinner, The City in Late Imperial China (Taipei: SMC Publishing Inc, 1995), 4–​5. 2 Brad Olsen, Sacred Places: 101 Spiritual Sites Around the World (San Francisco: CCC Publishing, 2000), 57. 3 Loc cit. 4 Brad Olsen, loc cit. 5 Adina Zemanek, Media in China, China in the Media: Processes, Strategies, Images, Identities (Krakow: Jagiellonian University Press, 2013), 87. 6 Youlan Feng (冯友兰), Feng Youlan’s Autobiography (冯友兰自述) (Beijing: China Renmin University Press 中国人民大学出版社, 2004), 12–​14. 7 Zuozhen Liu, The Case for Repatriating China’s Cultural Objects (Singapore: Springer Singapore, 2016), 150. 8 Ko-​yin Sung, Teaching and Learning Chinese as a Second or Foreign Language: Emerging Trends (MA: Lexington Books, 2019), 159. 9 Lisa Raphals, Knowing Words: Wisdom and Cunning in the Classical Traditions of China and Greece (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1992), 117. 10 King-​fai Tam and Sharon R Wesoky, Not Just a Laughing Matter: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Political Humor in China (Singapore: Springer Nature, 2017), 23. 11 Huaiqi Wu, An Historical Sketch of Chinese Historiography (Berlin: Springer-​ Verlag Berlin Heidelberg, 2018), 184.

Introduction  33 12 Zhiqin Jiao (焦智勤) and Chun Fu (傅春), “Character Ye, Ye City, and Hostels of Ye (邺·邺市·邺传舍),” Research on Ancient Chinese Capitals (中国古都研究) 15, (Shanxi: Sanqin Press 三秦出版社, 2004), 184–​185. 13 Zhiqin Jiao and Chun Fu, op cit, 189. 14 Maria Kurpaska, Chinese Language(s): A Look through the Prism of The Great Dictionary of Modern Chinese Dialects, (Berlin: De Gruyter Mouton, 2010), 18. 15 Zuomin Xu (许作民), “On the Sameness of Ye and Yin (论邺就是殷),” Research on Ancient Chinese Capitals (中国古都研究) (Shanxi: Sanqin Press 三秦出版社, 2004) 15, 196–​197. 16 Legge James, The Book of Rites (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1885) Part IV, XI–​XLVI, 309. 17 John Knoblock, Annals of Lü Buwei (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2000), 339. 18 David R Knechtges, Wen Xuan or Selections of Refined Literature, (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1982) 1, 549. 19 Guowei Wang (王国维), “Analyzing the Eight Capital Removals from Qi to Cheng Tang (自契至于成汤八迁),” Collected Works from the Hall of Contemplation (观堂集林) vol 12. 20 Ancient Places of the Spring and Autumn Period (春秋古地), quoted in “Turbid Zhang River (浊漳水),” The Commentary on the Waterway Classic (水经注) vol 10; the ancient place name Kuiqiu (葵丘), which refers to Ye, can also be found in epitaphs of tombs of Eastern Wei and Northern Qi. 21 “Henan, Part IV (河南四),” Essentials of Geography for Reading History (读史方舆纪要) vol 49. 22 Preface to “Henan, Part I (河南一),” Essentials of Geography for Reading History (读史方舆纪要) vol 46. 23 Zuyu Gu (顾祖禹). Preface to “Henan Part I (河南一),” Essentials of Geography for Reading History (读史方舆纪要) vol 46. 24 Kerry Brown, Berkshire Dictionary of Chinese Biography (England: Berkshire Publishing Group LLC, 2017), 270. 25 Julian Ward, Xu Xiake (1586–​1641): The Art of Travel Writing (London: Routledge, 2013), 18. 26 Dittmar Schorkowitz and Chia Ning, Managing Frontiers in Qing China (Leiden: Brill, 2016), 66. 27 Endymion P Wilkinson, Chinese History: A New Manual (Harvard University Asia Center for the Harvard-​Yenching Institute, 2000), 153. 28 Rebecca M Brown and Deborah S Hutton, A Companion to Asian Art and Architecture (Wiley Blackwell, 2015), 315. 29 CHEC, Culture (Beijing: Foreign Languages Press, 1982), 141. 30 Yong-​ku Cha, The Borderlands of China and Korea: Historical Changes in the Contact Zones of East Asia (MA: Lexington Books, 2020), 212. 31 The seventh year, written in Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture (彰德府志) of the Jiajing period of the Ming Dynasty; the sixth year, written in Dictionary of Words and Phrases (辞海). 32 “Linzhang county (临漳县)” was mentioned in “Geographical Record (地理志),” Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture (彰德府志), Jiajing period of the Ming dynasty (明·嘉靖). 33 Charles O Hucker, A Dictionary of Official Titles in Imperial China (Taipei: Southern Materials Center, Inc, 1988), 127.

34 Introduction 34 Wiebke Denecke, Wai-​yee Li, and Xiaofei Tian (eds.). The Oxford Handbook of Classical Chinese Literature (1000 BCE–​900BCE) (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2017), 6. 35 Media Wiki, “Records of Heroes,” MediaWiki, last edited Oct 29 2020, https://​ en.wikipedia.org/​wiki/​Records of Heroes. 36 J Edward Kidder, Himiko and Japan’s Elusive Chiefdom of Yamatai: Archaeology, History, and Mythology, (Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2007), 356. 37 Terry F Kleeman, Great Perfection (Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1998), 113. 38 Taichiming Cha, Mong China History and Heritage Preservation (Shenzhen: China Gold Printing Group, 2013), 154. 39 Daniel P Morgan and Damien Chaussende, eds, Monographs in Tang Official Historiography: Perspectives from the Technical Treatises of the History of Sui (Paris: Springer, 2019), 181. 40 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 477 and 592. 41 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 282. 42 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 323 and 571. 43 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 299. 44 Hilde De Weerdt, Information, Territory, and Networks: The Crisis and Maintenance of Empire in Song China (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2016), 50. 45 Daguan Zhou, A Record of Cambodia: The Land and Its People, trans Peter Harris,(Chiang Mai: Silkworm Books, 2007), note 15. 46 Y Maeyama, History of Oriental Astronomy: Proceedings of the Joint Discussion-​ 17 at the 23rd General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union, ed S M Razaullah Ansari (Leiden: Springer Netherlands, 1997), 22. 47 K E Brashier, Public Memory in Early China (Harvard: Harvard University Asia Center, 2014), 484. 48 Wendy Swartz et al., Early Medieval China: A Sourcebook (New York: Columbia University Press, 2014), 694. 49 Endymion P Wilkinson, op cit, 152. 50 N Harry Rothschild and Leslie V Wallace, Behaving Badly in Early and Medieval China (Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2017), 139. 51 Catherine Churchman, The People between the Rivers: The Rise and Fall of a Bronze Drum Culture (Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2016), 222. 52 Don J Wyatt, ed, Battlefronts Real and Imagined: War, Border, and Identity in the Chinese Middle Period (New York: Palgrave Macmillan US, 2008), 252. 53 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 336, 385, and 198. 54 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 567. 55 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 426, 333, and 262. 56 Joshua A Fogel, Just a Scholar: The Memoirs of Zhou Yiliang (1913–​ 2001) (Danvers: Brill, 2013), 105. 57 Jesse Field, Here in ‘China’ I Dwell: Reconstructing Historical Discourses of China for Our Time (Danvers: Brill, 2017), 68. 58 Bruce G Doar, China Archaeology and Art Digest, [Hongkong: Art Text (HK) Limited, 2000], 4, 1, 159. 59 Fabrizio Pregadio, The Encyclopedia of Taoism: Two-​ volume set (Routledge, 2013), 1402. 60 James D Tracy, City Walls: The Urban Enceinte in Global Perspective (Cambridge University Press, 2000), 429.

Introduction  35 61 Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians by Society of Architectural Historians (Society of Architectural Historians, 1986), 349. 62 Keiji Nakamura (中村圭尔), “A History of Japanese Studies on the Cities of Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties (日本魏晋南北朝城市研究史),” Research on Ancient Chinese and Japanese Cities (中日古代城市研究), ed Keiji Nakamura (中村圭尔) and Deyong Xin (辛德勇) (Beijing: China Social Sciences Press 中国社会科学出版社, 2004), 47. 63 Loc cit. 64 Keiji Nakamura (中村圭尔), op cit, 48–​49. 65 Reference News (参考消息), Jun 25, 1991, 2. 66 Shou Chen (陈寿), “Annals of Emperor Wu of Wei (武帝纪),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 1. 67 Daoyuan Li (郦道元), “Turbid Zhang River (浊漳水),” The Commentary on the Waterway Classic (水经注) vol 10. 68 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 481. 69 Veteranu, “A Traditional Male and Female Korean Totem Pole,”Shutterstock, Inc, Oct 20, 2020, https://​www.shutterstock.com/​zh/​image-​photo/​close-​traditional-​male-​ female-​korean-​totem-​1385247818.

1  Ye City’s rise as a regional center

I.  Origination and early development of the city Since Duke Huan of Qi built it, the Ye city never changed its location, which is nowadays known as the relic site of Three Terraces of Ye. Undeniably, the city played a historic role in the Qin and Han dynasties. To see this, just open Records of the Grand Historian (史记) and look at the “Basic Annals of the First Emperor of Qin (秦始皇本纪),” “Yearly Chronicle of the Six States (六国年表),” “Treatise on Rivers and Canals (河渠书),” or “Biographies of Jesters” chapters. According to Records of the Grand Historian, Zhao had three border cities—​Ye, Anyang (安阳), and Pingyang (平阳), so Qin had to occupy them all to annex the Shandong region because they were located so close to each other.1 In the 11th year (236 B C ) of King Zheng, the Qin troops occupied Ye and Anyang; in the 13th year (234 B C ) the Qin troops attacked Pingyang, and the next year they attacked the city again and finally occupied it. The records suggest that the Qin troops took those significant cities on the southern side of the Zhang River (漳水) in the 11th year; after the 13th year, they crossed the river, capturing Pingyang, Wucheng (武城), and other northern cities. As Zhang Shoujie (张守节) mentioned the record of The Comprehensive Gazetteer (括地志) in Corrected Meanings of Records of the Grand Historian (史记正义), “The original location of the ancient Pingyang city is 25 li west of Linzhang county, Xiangzhou prefecture;” … “during the Warring States period, Pingyang at first belonged to Han and later was sent to Zhao.” According to the gazetteer, Pingyang should be located roughly northwest of Ye because Linzhang (the county beside the Zhang River 临漳) lay 20 li east of the ancient Ye city in the Tang dynasty. Similarly, according to the “Biography of Yuan Shao (袁绍传)” chapter of Records of the Three Kingdoms, Yuan Shang (袁尚) and his army marched along the Western Mountain (西山) to save Ye when the city was attacked by Cao Cao. “When the reinforcement went east to the Pavilion of Yangping (阳平亭) that was 17 li away from Ye, they stopped beside the Fu River (滏水), lighting fires as a sign of their arrival.” Yangping was situated on the northern bank of the Fu River 17 li northwest of Ye and the southeastern suburbs of this city overlooked Wucheng across the river. So, here I want to argue that the Pavilion of Yangping should refer to Pingyang. After the “State Jin’s

Ye City’s rise as a regional center  37 separation by three clans (三家分晋),” the city was first built by Han and later given to Zhao. The most likely reason is that this city was too far away from the capital of Han, and the state found it difficult to govern such a remote city across the river. What role did Ye play in Qin’s annexation of the Shandong region? To find the answer, let’s take a close look at the Qin troops’ strategies as written in the “Basic Annals of the First Emperor of Qin” chapter in volume 6 of Records of the Grand Historian, In the 11th year of King Zheng of Qin, Wang Jian (王翦), Huan Yi (桓齮) and, Yang Duanhe (杨端和) attacked Ye, picking up nine cities. Wang Jian led a force in seizing Yuyu (阏与) and Liaoyang (嶛阳) and afterwards the three forces were reorganized into a single army. On the 18th day of his leadership, Wang Jian ordered all those men below the rank of 100 shi (a volume unit of grains 石) to return home and selected two out of every ten soldiers to continuously serve in the army. Later, this army captured Ye and Anyang under the leadership of Huan Yi. In the 13th year, Huan Yi attacked Pingyang, killing Zhao general Hu Zhe (扈辙) and beheading 100,000. … In the 14th year, he defeated the Zhao army in Pingyang and conquered the city, seized Yi’an (宜安) and killed the garrison commander. Besides, he captured Wucheng. In the 15th year, the king of Qin sent two armies, one reaching Ye and the other arriving in Taiyuan (太原) and seizing Langmeng (狼孟). The “Yearly Chronicle of the Six States” chapter in volume 15 of Records of the Grand Historian says, In the ninth year of King Daoxiang of Zhao, “The Qin troops seized our cities Yuyu and Ye; in the end we lost nine cities.” In the fourth year of King Qian of Zhao, “Qin sent two armies into our territory, one army capturing our cities Langmeng and Powu (鄱吾) and the other army reaching Ye.” Sima Qian consulted the original chronicles of Qin and Zhao when writing the “Basic Annals of the First Emperor of Qin” and “Yearly Chronicle of the Six States” chapters respectively. The 11th year of King Zheng of Qin is the same year as the ninth year (236 BC ) of King Daoxiang of Zhao; likewise, the 15th year of King Zheng coincides with the fourth year (232 BC ) of King Qian of Zhao. Each state chronicled the mutual wars according to their own year title system. The aforesaid words “attacked our” indicate that Sima Qian copied the original chronicles of Zhao. Judging from the above quotes from Records of the Grand Historian, in 236 BC , the Qin troops marched east along the Clear Zhang River (清漳水), seizing Yuyu (present-​day Heshun, Shaanxi province) and Liaoyang (present-​day Zuoquan, Shaanxi). Then the troops were incorporated into a single army and led by Wang Jian. Later on, the army

38  Ye City’s rise as a regional center was reorganized and expanded before Huan Yi became the Commander-​in-​ Chief and led the army, marching down the Zhang River and capturing Ye on the southern bank of the river. The city became the first target of attack because of its military importance. Essentially, as long as Ye was occupied, Anyang lying southwest of Ye would quickly slip into the clutches of the Qin troops. As the “Basic Annals of the First Emperor of Qin” chapter says, the Qin troops planned to attack Ye and Anyang in succession, which reflects their overall strategy. When the Qin troops took the cities south of the river and consolidated these outposts, they started attacking Pingyang and Wucheng on the northern bank. It took them two years to attack Pingyang twice, with 100,000 of the Zhao army being beheaded in the first campaign. It is easy to imagine how formidable the campaigns were back then. As Pingyang sandwiched between Wucheng and Handan was taken, Wucheng was occupied soon after, as expected, because it was totally isolated from a geographical point of view. Considering that those southern cities like Ye and the three northern cities—​Pingyang, Wucheng, and Yi’an (southwest of present-​day Gaocheng, Hebei province)—​ were all captured, the Qin troops could directly attack Handan (邯郸) from its southern and northern wings. As the defending forces around Handan were wiped out, in the 15th year of his reign, King Zheng sent out two armies: One army reached Taiyuan, seized Langmeng (present-​day Yangqu, Shaanxi province), went east down the Hutuo River (滹沱河, namely 呼沱河), captured Powu (southwest of present-​day Lingshou, Hebei province), and finally crossed Jingxing Fortress (井陉塞), thus separating Zhao into two halves. The other army, at the same time, reached Ye, looming over Handan. Since Ye city, the gateway to Handan, determined the safety of Zhao, the Qin troops captured Ye and gained the geographical advantage by seizing Handan. In 257 BC , Lord Xinling stole his state’s tiger-​shaped tally, defeating the Qin troops that besieged Handan by use of the geographical advantages of Ye and saving Zhao from the crisis of subjugation. However, this time Qin learned a lesson from that past failure and captured Ye before besieging Handan. The conquest of those cities such as Ye became a piercing thorn in the side of the Six States east of Mount Xiao, which was a prelude to Qin’s unification of China. In 230 BC , Qin conquered Han; in 228 BC , Qin took Handan and Zhao collapsed; in 226 BC , Qin subjugated Yan; the following year Qin conquered Wei; in 223 BC , Qin subdued Chu; and in 221 BC , Qin accepted the surrender of Qi. In this way, Qin annexed all the Six States. As far back as the Qin dynasty, Ye was just a county seat of Handan commandery located in the upper reaches of the Zhang and Fu Rivers far from the political center of Xianyang. In other words, Handan still administered political, economic, military, and other affairs of the county seat. Yet it was an outpost to defend the commandery seat. After Qin’s unification of the Six States, the city served as a courier station of the north–​ south path on the eastern piedmont of the Taihang Mountains. This city was of geographical significance because it controlled both central China and the Hebei region.

Ye City’s rise as a regional center  39 In 209 B C , Chen Sheng (陈胜) and Wu Guang (吴广) rose up against the Qin empire. “As a result, countless people responded vehemently and carried rations following them.”2 Chen Sheng was hailed as King of Zhangchu. Later, two natives of Daliang (大梁, now Kaifeng, Henan province), Zhang Er (张耳) and Chen Yu (陈余), visited him and Chen Yu advised, “My sire, your troops are attacking Liang and Chu. Obviously, you desire to go west to enter the Hangu Pass and thus there would be no time to conquer Hebei (the region north of the Yellow River 河北). I once toured around Zhao and knew well the local geography and heroes. Please give us a force to occupy and govern that land surreptitiously.”3 As long as the Hebei region was controlled, Chen Sheng could directly attack Guanzhong (the region west of Hangu Pass 关中) without caring about any danger from behind. Hearing this piece of advice, Chen Sheng ordered Wu Chen (武臣), Zhang Er, and Chen Yu to lead a brigade to occupy Handan. Unexpectedly, when Wu Chen occupied Handan and established himself in the land, he titled himself “King of Zhao” with Zhang Er and Chen Yu’s support. When the three discussed the situation, Zhang Er told Wu Chen, “Chen Sheng didn’t actually want to make you King of Zhao. Now he is engaged in warfare against Qin and has no time to pay attention to us. But when he overthrows Qin, he will attack us sooner or later. We’d not march west, but go north and expand our territory to Yan and Dai. Therefore, apart from the natural barrier of the Yellow River on the south, there are Yan and Dai guarding our north border. Even if Chen Sheng could vanquish the Qin troops, he will not dare to attack us. As long as he does not dare to attack us, he will rely heavily upon us. Using this chance, we may very likely dominate the whole world.”4 The two counsellors proposed this because they had conducted in-​depth surveys of the situation in the last years of the Qin dynasty and especially the conditions of Yan and Zhao. Later on, Wu Chen appointed his generals to govern Yan and Zhao as suggested. Nevertheless, it was unexpected that the Qin army lured Wu Chen’s subordinate Li Liang (李良) into attacking Handan and killing Wu Chen. So Zhang Er and Chen Yu had to escape to Xindu (信都 now Jizhou, Hebei province) and soon later recovered Handan, hailing Zhao Xie as king. In the autumn of 208 B C , Qin general Zhang Han (章邯) conquered and destroyed Handan, causing Zhang Er and King Xie run away to Julu (巨鹿 present-​day Pingxiang, Hebei province). Wang Li (王离) had a force of 100,000 troops stationed around Julu; Zhang Han removed another force of 200,000 to the south of Julu, digging a channel from the Zhang River to transport supplies. When the two massive forces eagerly attacked the city, Zhang Er made twofold preparations. On the one hand, he organized his own troops to guard the city; on the other hand, he sent messengers to seek military reinforcements everywhere. Yan general Zang Tu (臧荼), Qi general Tian Du (田都), and others arrived, but none of them dared to fight the Qin troops. Seeing this, Xiang Yu (项羽), the chief leader of the rebel forces, ordered Ying Bu (英布) to lead a corps of 20,000 to reinforce Julu; then Xiang Yu himself led the main force across the river, with their ships being sunk, their kettles (釜) and

40  Ye City’s rise as a regional center steamers (甑) being broken and their barracks being burnt. What’s more, they carried a mere load of three days’ rations, which means that they had to defeat Zhang Han or starve to death.”5 As a result, both sides were locked in fierce battles; the Chu army rent the air with their deafening roars and howls, defeating the much stronger Qin troops and capturing Wang Li alive. As a result, Zhang Han also surrendered. The main force of the Qin troops was annihilated in the campaign, which is referred to as the “Battle of Julu”, decisive in overturning the Qin’s rule. In fact, the battle has close ties with the terrain of the Ye city’s environs. The “Basic Annals of Xiang Yu” chapter of Records of the Grand Historian, Pei Yin’s Collected Annotations to Records of the Grand Historian, Sima Zhen’s Commentary on Records of the Grand Historian and Zhang Shoujie’s, Corrected Meanings of Records of the Grand Historian claim that back in the Warring States period, Nangong (南公), a master of the Yin-​Yang School, predicted, “Even if there is only the Sanhu (三户) of Chu left, the people of the place will overthrow the Qin rule definitely.” Corrected Meanings of Records of the Grand Historian says, “In Fu Qian’s (服虔) words, ‘There is a place called Sanhu of the Zhang River.’ Meng Kang (孟康) said, ‘The place is actually a gorge located 30 li west of the Ye city.’ The Comprehensive Gazetteer also says, ‘The Turbid Zhang River (浊漳水) flows east along the northern side of Pavilion of Duke Ge (葛公亭) and the Sanhu Gorge (三户峡), also known as Sanhu Ferry (三户津). This gorge lies within the territory of Fuyang county (滏阳县), Xiangzhou prefecture.’ The master was expert in the doctrines of yin and yang and the rule of rise and fall. He knew that the Qin empire would surely be overturned by natives of the place. Indeed, later Xiang Yu crossed the gorge exterminating Zhang Han’s army and making him surrender. As a result, the Qin empire came to an end.” Tang-​dynasty scholars like Zhang Shoujie and Meng Kang argued that Xiang Yu likely crossed the Zhang River at the Sanhu Ferry, 30 li west of the Ye city, thus being engaged in the decisive war with the Qin troops. Later scholars are dubious about of this because Zhang Han built the channel to provide supplies to Wang Li. In this case, Xiang Yu had to control the upper reaches of the Zhang River to win the war. Unexpectedly, he raided the Qin troops from behind and thus defeated the Qin troops. What if Zhang Han could assign a force to defend Ye and control the upper reaches of the river? Xiang Yu’s reinforcement would have been blocked and history might have been very different. From the Warring States period onwards, vertical (合纵) and horizontal (连横) alliance strategies were actually an embodiment of political struggle between the Shandong and Guanzhong regions. In the late Qin dynasty, Zhang Er occupied Zhao and controlled the Zhang and Fu River valleys; Handan and Ye adjoined the Henan (河南) and Hebei regions. Given a chance, Zhang Er could grow strong enough to oppose the Qin empire as the Six States went against State Qin. The Second Emperor of Qin appointed the main force of his troops to attack Hebei, which fully demonstrates the enormous threat that Zhang posed to the Qin regime in the Guanzhong region and the undisputed

Ye City’s rise as a regional center  41 importance of the Hebei region. Later on, Xiang Yu defeated Zhang Han, partly because his army was brave and combat-​worthy and partly, perhaps more importantly, because he chose Sanhu Ferry as the point of breakthrough and gained the geological advantage of attacking the enemies. In contrast, Zhang Han did not have his troops stationed on the Zhang River to control Ye or make the riverside city a fortress, which made his rear completely vulnerable to surprise attack. Xiang Yu occupied the upper reaches of the Zhang River and marched down the river attacking Zhang Han’s army. Ye, though not the main battlefield, provided the strategic location that is regarded as one of the major factors behind Xiang Yu’s victory. After the Chu-​Han War from 206 BC to 202 B C , Liu Bang defeated Xiang Yu and established the Western Han epoch. In the early period of the Western Han epoch, Chen Xi (陈豨), based in Dai (northeast of Wei county, Hebei), rebelled and occupied the region north of Mount Chang (常山). Liu Bang himself led the troops to put down the rebellion. When he crossed the Zhang River, the emperor said, “I know Chen Xi will be defeated since he has not occupied the Zhang River or subdued Handan.”6 Liu Bang suppressed the revolts of the King of Yan, the King of Zhao and the King of Dai. In this way, he realized the importance of the Hebei region and made a decisive change to the previous administration. In 195 B C , the emperor established Wei commandery at Ye, and the county seat became a commandery seat, which paved the way for the growth of the city into a regional political center. Later on, Emperor Wudi of Han (汉武帝) ordered the head of Wei county to renovate the conventional water conservancy projects and divert water from the Zhang River for field irrigation on the basis of Ximen Bao’s water channels. Emperor Wudi divided the territory of his empire into 13 regions, with one region being known as Jizhou (冀州). The Regional Inspector of Jizhou (冀州刺史) administered Wei, Zhao, Zhongshan, Qinghe, and other vassals. Though the inspector did not have a permanent official seat, his jurisdiction was determined, making it possible for the jurisdiction to develop into a political district. In the late Western Han epoch, Handan gradually gave way to its southward city Ye as a regional center. Zhu Kezhen (竺可桢) argued that from the first year (48 B C ) of the Chuyuan period of the Western Han epoch, the climate became colder and colder, disturbing the balance between yin and yang and causing frequent natural disasters. Peasants first bore the brunt of those disasters. Moreover, those strongmen plundered wealth and materials from them and the government imposed intolerable taxes. As a result, a grave social crisis emerged. In this situation, Wang Mang (王莽) conducted some reform, but it simply made things worse. In AD 17, a full-​scale uprising broke out; in AD 23, the peasant army took Chang’an, killing Wang Mang. Liu Xuan (刘玄) hailed himself “Emperor Gengshi,” entering Luoyang (洛阳) and assigning Liu Xiu (刘秀) to inspect the Hebei region. In those days, there was a children’s song, “Social harmony relies on the Red Eyebrow Army (赤眉军) and the unification of the world relies on the Hebei region.” As there were the Red Eyebrows and

42  Ye City’s rise as a regional center dozens of small and large peasant troops moving around the east and north of Ye, Liu Xiu left Luoyang and went northeast to Ye, where he encountered adviser Deng Yu (邓禹). They discussed possible ways of bringing peace to the world. Wang Yinglin (王应麟), a scholar of the Song dynasty, said in the “Discourses of Famous Ministers: Deng Yu Persuaded Emperor Guangwu (名臣议论考•邓禹说光武)” in volume 7 of Tongjian Geography Interpretation (通鉴地理通释), When Deng Yu heard Liu Xiu, the future Emperor Guangwu, was going to guard the Hebei region, he lashed the horse north and caught up with him in Ye. Deng Yu persuaded Liu Xiu, “Although Emperor Gengshi has established the capital in the Guanxi (region west of Hangu Pass 关西), the Shandong region is still in chaos due to rebel forces like tens of thousands of Red Eyebrows and Green Oxen (青犊). Moreover, some warlords have occupied the Three Capital Districts (三辅) and assembled their forces. The emperor has not met any setback in his political career and always turned a deaf ear to courtiers’ statements of making prudent decisions. Moreover, almost all his generals are mediocre men and know nothing but collecting money and pursuing power. It’s obvious that they just want to indulge in enjoyment all day long. None of them is loyal and prudent enough to have great plans for revering the lord and restoring peace for the people. As the world broke up, many different states and kingdoms have emerged. Even if you become a governor, I’m afraid you will have no great accomplishments. At present, you’d better solicit heroes from everywhere and delight the common people to follow in the footsteps of Emperor Gaozu who founded the Western Han. Definitely, you will save countless people and pacify the world with ease.” Liu Xiu felt greatly pleased and asked his men to call Deng Yu “General Deng;” Deng Yu often stayed in Liu Xiu’s residence and discussed appropriate strategies with him. Liu Xiu visited Ye and Handan, and then went north to Youzhou and Jizhou (幽蓟) and Jizhou蓟州, where he united the heroes of Yan and Zhao and incorporated various rebel troops into his army. Based in the Hebei region, he defeated other potential opponents. Therefore, with the support of local strongmen, Liu Xiu made himself emperor at Hao (鄗, the present-​day Guchengdian town north of Baixiang county, Hebei province), establishing the Eastern Han regime. In the early Eastern Han epoch, Regional Inspector of Jizhou established his official seat in the Gao (Hao) city and later moved the seat to Ye. Apart from geographical location, political consideration was another factor behind the rise of Ye city’s status. The city was a main sphere of activity for the Yellow Scarf Army (黄巾军) in the late Eastern Han epoch. In the first year (AD 184) of the Zhongping period of the Eastern Han epoch, rebel marshal “Ma

Ye City’s rise as a regional center  43 Yuanyi (马元义) of Dafang (大方) and others subdued tens of thousands of men from Jing and Yang (荆扬), in hopes of conquering Ye.”7 When the rebels were suppressed, the Eastern Han regime assigned the Regional Inspector of Jizhou to govern Ye and control the Hebei region more strongly. The peasant rebels dealt the regime’s social order a heavy blow; various regional inspectors greatly expanded their strengths through suppression, taking charge of military, political, and financial affairs. In the fourth year (AD 187) of the Zhongping period of Emperor Lingdi, the court changed the regional inspector into the governor guarding the prefecture. As the seat of Jizhou, Ye became a major city of the Hebei region. In the late Eastern Han epoch, warlords waged wars against each other, and Dong Zhuo (董卓) set a fire, turning the over-​160-​year-​old Eastern Capital, namely Luoyang, into ashes. After Dong Zhuo’s death, Li Jue (李傕) and Guo Si (郭汜) set fires and conducted massacres around Chang’an. As a result, “both capitals became desolate and bleak” and “many people were killed.” Naturally, the desolate and dilapidated capitals were no longer the target of struggle. In contrast, Ye lying on the Zhang River had a growing status. From the Western and Eastern Han epochs onwards, Jizhou and Hebei regions around the Ye city had a well-​developed rural economy. In the Eastern Han epoch, Cui Shi (崔寔) said, “Now Qingzhou (青州), Xuzhou (徐州), Yanzhou and Jizhou (冀州) were too densely populated and the limited land failed to support large populations. However, the Three Capital Districts and commanderies nearby in Liangzhou (凉州) and Youzhou (幽州) are thinly populated and fit for farming.”8 and “Youzhou and Jizhou were previously rich in war horses”9 and “Jizhou is a crucial land for making great feats”10 and “local people were wealthy and there were sufficient supplies of soldiers and rations.”11 In the ninth year (A D 204) of Jian’an period, Cao Cao defeated Yuan Shao and served as Governor of Jizhou. “The household register shows that there are 300,000 people and thus Jizhou is a large prefecture”12 then “Jizhou has the largest number of households and many areas of arable land. Besides, the prefecture abounds in mulberries and dates. It is without doubt a main area of solicitation for the empire.”13 Lying in the fertile Jizhou, Ye seemed even more important as an economic and political center. When Dong Zhuo dominated the court in Luoyang, he appointed Han Fu (韩馥) from a well-​established clan to reach Ye and guard the entire Jizhou. Why was this man chosen? Modern historian Wang Zhongluo (王仲荦) said, “This appointment was to win over those great clans of Yingchuan.”14 But actually, that’s just one of the reasons. If Dong Zhuo wanted to win over the clans, why did he appoint Han Fu as Governor of Jizhou far from the court rather than another high-​ranking official in the court? Considering the great importance of Ye, Dong Zhuo appointed such a coward instead of a brave general as governor because such a general might make the city his own territory and loom over Luoyang. Besides, the Ye city would not feel worried about the decision. In the eighth month of the sixth year (AD 189) of

44  Ye City’s rise as a regional center the Zhongping period, Metropolitan Commandant (司隶校尉)15 Yuan Shao quickly fled to Jizhou when he heard that Dong Zhuo had secretly discussed ousting the incumbent emperor. To placate Yuan Shao, Dong Zhuo assigned him as Governor of Bohai Commandery (勃海太守).16 When Yuan Shao arrived at the commandery seat Nanpi (northeast of present-​day Nanpi county, Hebei province), he planned to fight against Dong Zhuo. Governor of Jizhou Han Fu sent several persons to assist Yuan Shao and monitor him. However, the situation changed when Qiao Mao (桥瑁), Governor of Dongjun Commandery, faked a letter in which the Three Dukes (三公) listed the crimes of Dong Zhuo and wanted them to kill Dong Zhuo to save the country as the court had been tyrannized by him. Upon receiving the letter, Han Fu and his assistants discussed it and decided to write to Yuan Shao so that he could rise up against Dong Zhuo. In the first month of the first year (A D 190) of the Chuping period, the prefectures and commanderies in the Guandong region sent troops against Dong Zhuo, with Yuan Shao acting as commander. Yuan Shao and the Governor of Henei Wang Kuang (王匡) had their troops stationed in Henei while Han Fu stayed in Ye to provide fodder and food. Dong Zhuo felt extremely fearful and burnt down Luoyang before moving to Chang’an. The army of the Shandong region was assembled in the name of attacking Dong Zhuo. As Dong Zhuo fled, the army collapsed and different generals fought for their spheres of influence and in particular control of the Ye city. In A D 191, a troop of Yan and Dai soldiers led by Gongsun Zan (公孙瓒) defeated Han Fu at Anping (安平) and went south to Jizhou. Han Fu panicked greatly as he had little knowledge of military strategy, and Yuan Shao intimidated him into abdicating the governorship. “As Yuan Shao gained Jizhou, Gongsun Zan could not oppose him”17 and “Yuan Shao’s army did not have a dou of rations” and thus “would collapse within several days,”18 but Han Fu’s abdication meant that Yuan Shao escaped the deathly crisis. In the second year (A D 191), Yuan Shao served as Governor of Jizhou and guarded Ye. Ju Shou (沮授) persuaded Yuan Shao to invite the Heaven’s Son to Ye and establish the royal palace out there, but Yuan Shao did not accept his suggestion. Finally, Yuan Shao was defeated by Cao Cao during the Battle of Guandu in the fifth year (AD 200) of the Jian’an period. That was because he didn’t try to appeal to the gentry and ordinary people, though he occupied Jizhou, a superb location. When Yuan Shao died in the seventh month of the seventh year (202), his sons Yuan Tan (袁谭) and Yuan Shang (袁尚) fought for occupying Jizhou. Seizing this great chance, Cao Cao attacked Ye and finally took it in the ninth year (204), which set the scene for Cao Cao’s unification of northern China. The Ye city and its environs had been the key to the struggle between the Guanzhong and Shandong regions in the Warring States period. In the last years of the Qin, Western Han, or Easter Han dynasty, many warlords based in the Hebei region tried to subdue the Central Plains and even the world. The Ye city played a decisive role in the political struggle thanks to its special location and thus influenced the direction of Chinese history.

Ye City’s rise as a regional center  45

II.  Reconstruction and expansion In the Qin dynasty, Ye was just a small-​scale county seat. Later when the dynasty reached its twilight years, the city was thrown into the maelstrom of war as rebels like Xiang Yu, Zhang Er, and Chen Yu fought Qin generals including Zhang Han. “In the tenth month of the sixth year of his reign, Emperor Gaozu ordered all counties to reconstruct or renovate their county seats.”19 So, the fortress town of Ye had to be built meticulously. Since Wei commandery was established in the 12th year (195 B C ), Ye had been the prefectural seat. Its fortress town had to be made larger because it used to be a mere county seat. During the reign of Wang Mang, the commandery was renamed “Weicheng”, still based in Ye. During the Zhongping period of the Eastern Han epoch, it became the prefectural seat of Jizhou. In the second year (A D 191) of the Chuping period of Emperor Xiandi, Yuan Shao replaced Han Fu as governor and renovated Ye and the official mansion. Back then, “the prefectural seat was roughly established;” Guo Tu, a native of Yingchuan (颍川), persuaded Yuan Shao “to invite the Heaven’s Son to Ye”20 and Ju Shou also suggested that he “should make the Heaven’s Son settle in Ye and control him to order all vassals.”21 Despite not accepting their suggestions, Yuan Shao determined the fundamental design of the prefectural seat. Through his efforts, Ye city had taken shape basically as a prefectural capital. Pei Songzhi quoted from Record of Heroes (英雄记) in the “Biography of Yuan Shao” chapter in volume 6 of Records of the Three Kingdoms, In the third year of the Chuping period, Wei Commandery rose up and united with Yu Du (于毒), a rebel of Heishan (黑山), taking Ye and killing its governor Li Cheng (栗成). More than a dozen rebels and their tens of thousands of men gathered in Ye. … Rebel Tao Sheng (陶升) used to be a beadle of Neihuang county. Kind-​hearted as he was, Tao Sheng along with his men entered the city by climbing over the west city wall. He directly found Yuan Shao’s family and other gentry members in the inner city and personally escorted them to Chiqiu (斥丘) before returning. This record shows us that during Yuan Shao’s reign, the Ye city consisted of the bailey and the inner city. The inner city was located in the northwest part and was referred to as the site of the prefectural government offices. The inner city’s west and north walls were connected with the West Gate and the North Gate. The gathering place of Heishan rebels should be the bailey in the southern part of the city where the commandery seat was located and the guards were stationed. It is recorded that Tao Sheng entered the West Gate and fled through the North Gate, taking away Yuan Shao’s family and others. Chiqiu (about 12 li southeast of present-​day Cheng’an county, Hebei) was at least 70 li northeast of Ye. Now that the eastern and southern parts of the bailey were occupied by Heishan rebels, Tao Sheng had to pass through North Gate, going north and turning northeast.

46  Ye City’s rise as a regional center There is no record of the exact perimeter of the bailey of the Ye city of the Eastern Han epoch. However, the “Biography of Yuan Shao” chapter of Records of the Three Kingdoms claims that when Cao Cao besieged the city, “he dug a moat as long as 40 li.” The Commentary on the Waterway Classic (水经注) quotes from Annals of Emperor Xiandi (献帝春秋), When the Minister of Works (司空), in fact Cao Cao, besieged Ye, he excavated a 40 li long moat around the city. Seeing the shallow and narrow moat, Shen Pei (审配) did not seize the chance but laughed at Cao Cao’s deed. The minister ordered instant construction and increased the width and depth to two zhang overnight, diverting water from the Zhang River to fill the moat. As a result, he subdued the city. In volume 64 of History as a Mirror (资治通鉴) it says, “In the fifth month of the ninth year of the Jian’an period, Cao Cao destroyed the earthen mounds and tunnels and dug a moat of 40 li around the Ye city.” The length unit “li” mentioned here falls within the measurement system of the Han dynasty and is equivalent to 0.7 of the present-​day li; therefore, 40 Han-​li is about 28 present-​day li. So, the bailey of the city must be lesser than 28 li. In the Later Zhao of the Sixteen States dynasty, Shi Hu rebuilt the city based on Cao Cao’s layout, being dubbed “Qiwu City (七五城)” since it was 7 li long (east–​west) and 5 li wide (south–​north). The rebuilt city had a perimeter of 24 li, which equals 20.88 li according to the present-​day Chinese length unit system as one li of Later Zhao (as per the Western Jin system of measurement) is about 435 m. It is concluded that the bailey of Yuan Shao’s Ye city likely coincides with that of those cities under the rule of Cao-Wei and Later Zhao. If the bailey was smaller than in the Wei of Three Kingdoms, it would be unnecessary and time-​consuming for Cao Cao to dig the moat; conversely, if the bailey was larger, it would be impossible for Cao Cao to dig the moat around the city because the guards could likely shoot Cao Cao’s working soldiers. Basically, Cao Cao had to select the best site for moat-​digging to besiege the city and save manpower immediately. As recorded, the gates of Ye of the Eastern Han epoch include Zhang Gate (章门), East Gate (东门), and other three unknown gates. Zhang Gate is the South Gate of the city. History as a Mirror says, In the seventh month of the autumn, Yuan Shang led a force of more than 10,000 to save Ye. Before his arrival, … Deputy Governor (主簿) Li Fu (李孚), a native of Julu, got into the city as ordered. He pretended to be Commander-​in-​Chief (都督), entering the camp of Cao Cao’s troops from north and went east along the city wall. … When he reached the southern camp in front of Zhang Gate, he denounced the besiegers and went through the camp successfully before using a rope to climb onto the city wall with the help of the guards.”

Ye City’s rise as a regional center  47 Obviously, the southern camp should be established in front of Zhang Gate. Three Gates: According to Pei Songzhi’s (裴松之) annotations to “Biography of Jia Kui (贾逵传)” of Records of the Three Kingdoms and the section about the ninth year of the Jian’an period in volume 64 of History as a Mirror, the guard generals of Ye drove the old and the weak out of the city and those people walked through the three gates before surrender. Those gates should be the Three Gates on the southern wall of Ye. The southern half of the city was the residential quarter and naturally they went out through the gates. The middle of the three gates is Zhang Gate, the due south gate. These gates built by Yuan Shao still functioned in the Cao-​Wei and Later Zhao dynasties. East Gate: The “Biography of Yuan Shao” chapter of Records of the Three Kingdoms tells us, “Shen Pei’s older brother had a son called Shen Rong (沈荣). On the night, Shen Rong opened the gate, letting Cao Cao’s troops get in.” The volume 64 of History as a Mirror says about the ninth year of Jian’an period, “Shen Rong, the son of Shen Pei’s brother, acted as Colonel of East Gate (东门校尉). On the wuyin (戊寅) night of the eighth month, Shen Rong opened the city gate.” When Cao Cao attacked Ye, his troops entered the city through East Gate. The term “wuyin” refers to September 13, AD 204 according to the Chinese calendar era based on the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches. On that night, the Ye city fell into the hands of Cao Cao. Secret Gate (突门) and Fence Gate (栅门): As the “Biography of Yuan Shao” chapter of Records of Three Kingdoms puts it, General Shen Pei’s subordinate “Feng Li (冯礼) opened the secret gate, letting in over 300 soldiers of Cao Cao. Shen Pei noticed it and instantly threw a huge stone at the fence gate within the secret gate, closing the door. All those soldiers were killed.” The secret gate is in fact the gate of the barbican. In 1984, archaeologists explored the barbican outside the gateway of the East Gate of North Ye City Site. The site of this gateway is likely where the secret gate of the Eastern Han epoch was located. The text reveals that while Cao Cao was attacking Ye, Shen Pei along with his troops guarded the east wall. As Shen Rong (申荣), who guarded the East Gate, betrayed his uncle Shen Pei, Cao Cao chose the East Gate as the point of breakthrough. North Gate (北门): In the third year of the Chuping period, Wei com­ mandery was engaged in a rebellion and Tao Sheng escorted Yuan Shao’s family through this gate, heading for Chiqiu. Later when Cao Cao attacked Ye, he made two moats around the city, one in front of the South Gate and the other in front of the North Gate. As the “Biography of Yuan Shao” chapter of Records of the Three Kingdoms says, Yuan Shang heard that the situation was extremely tense and instantly led a force of more than 10,000 to save Ye. They kept on marching along the Western Mountain. When the reinforcement went east to Pavilion of Yangping that was 17 li away from Ye, they stopped beside the Fu River,

48  Ye City’s rise as a regional center lighting fires as a sign of their arrival. And the city guards lit fires too. Shen Pei sent his troops to the north of the city to fight with Yuan Shang across the moat. It should be the northern moat. Li Fu also entered the camp of Cao Cao’s troops from north and went east along the city wall. It is presumed that Cao Cao besieged the two gates and encircled the other parts of the city via a moat. By doing so, he could concentrate his troops and avoid overstretching himself. Southeast Turret (角楼) of Ye City: In the commentary on the “Biography of Yuan Shao” chapter of Records of the Three Kingdoms, Pei Songzhi quoted from Life and Deeds of Past Sages (先贤行状), “At that time, Shen Pei, who stayed on the southeast turret of the city, saw Cao Cao’s men rushing in and felt furious at Xin Ping (辛评) and Guo Tu (郭图) because they desired to betray him. He sent some men to the prison of Ye and killed all family members of Zhongzhi (the style name of Xin Ping).” Cao-Wei, Later Zhao, Eastern Wei, and Northern Qi dynasties all built a turret at the same site. Later, the Northern Song epoch built turrets at four corners of the forbidden city and then Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties followed suit. Today, the four turrets in the Imperial City of Beijing are still in good condition. This tradition probably owes its origin to the turret of the Ye city. Hostels in Ye City (邺传舍): In the Qin and Han dynasties, Ye city had been known as a traffic hub. Hostels were established there in the Han dynasty, as represented by an eaves-​tile inscribed with three characters “Ye Zhuan She” and unearthed at the site of the city relic by Jiao Zhiqin and Fu Chun from Anyang Museum, Henan province. The tile diameter is 14.5 cm and its cincture width is 1 cm. The three characters are carved vertically in Han seal script, each being flanked by two straight lines. Outside each straight line a cloud pattern is decorated. … The tile was probably made during the Han dynasty, judging from its design.22 Hostels were built at the trunk lines from the Warring States period to the Han dynasty for delivery of official documents, transfer of materials, accommodation, rest, and horse-​changing of officials and passengers, to name a few. In each area, the hostels were special-​purpose buildings. This eaves-​tile is a special item for the hostel of the city in the Han dynasty. From the Qin dynasty to the early years of the Chuping period of the Eastern Han epoch, Ye had roughly maintained its territory as the inner city.23 In the second year of the Chuping period, Yuan Shao made himself Governor of Jizhou and started administering Ye. From the second year of the Chuping period to the fifth year (A D 204) of the Jian’an period, he focused on urban reconstruction and expansion, as evidenced by two projects: First, bailey construction by expanding the inner city south and east, as well as establishment of the Wei commandery seat and Ye county seat in the southern part of the bailey. In fact, prior to bailey construction, the southern and eastern areas of the inner city had been developed into residential quarters

Ye City’s rise as a regional center  49 and military barracks. This construction would incorporate the quarters and barracks into the bailey, which can expand the territory of the city and strengthen its defenses. But for the betrayal of Shen Pei’s subordinates, Cao Cao would have had much more difficulty in taking Ye. Second, reconstruction of the inner city and prefectural seat mansion. The division between the functions of the inner city and the bailey is clear-​ cut according to the political hierarchy. The northwestern part of the inner city was inhabited by the prefectural governor because of its great height and superb location; the south and north mail roads adjacent to the Zhang River and the eastern piedmont of the Taihang Mountains were home to the stately mansions of nobles and ministers for its convenient traffic; the low-​lying southern area of the bailey was inhabited by low-​class officials, and their smaller residences were intertwined with the common people’s dwellings. The bailey was another function zone apart from the residential area for officials in the inner city. This division arises from the presence of separatist regimes in feudal China. Under the impact of the feudal autocracy, Ye demonstrated many architectural elements of the capitals of the Qin and Han dynasties, yet still showed some new ideas dissimilar to those characteristics of the capitals of the Spring and Autumn and Waring States period. This municipal layout produced a very wide influence on the later planning of the city. Cao-Wei, Later Zhao, and Former Yan (前燕) inherited virtually the entire layout featuring left–​right symmetry of the main buildings around the central axis and checkerboard-​shaped streets. Through the historical struggle over long time spans, Ye had developed from a military fortress into a county seat, later a commandery seat, and finally a prefectural capital. In the end, Ye had risen as a regional center with large stretches of hinterland. Yuan Shao’s efforts at reconstructing and expanding the Ye city in line with a regular layout give a hint of his expectation of reunification. But why did he not accept the suggestions of Guo Tu and Ju Shou even though he agreed with them? Actually, he was too complacent to let the throne bind him and merely wanted to be a vassal king. By learning from his failure, Cao Cao greeted Emperor Xiandi at Xu (许) and let the emperor stay there. In terms of Yuan Shao’s plan, Cao Cao himself made Ye the capital and reunified northern China before annexing southern states. Cao Cao and Yuan Shao employed the same strategies and routes, but why did Yuan Shao lose the decisive Battle of Guandu with Cao Cao? Using the right strategy and grasping the best chance made Cao Cao a great warlord, which could have provided a great deal of food for thought for later rulers.

Notes 1 Zhang Zhi claimed that Pingyang is the present site of the ancient Ye city. As far as I am concerned, this opinion is erroneous because Pingyang and Ye are in fact two different cities; please refer to Zhi Zhang, “A Study of the Original Location

50  Ye City’s rise as a regional center of the Ye City (邺之初筑是否在古邺城处),” Historical Geography (历史地理), 9 (1990, 10). 2 Kejun Yan (严可均), ed, “Complete Han Prose: Discussion of Qin’s Faults (全汉文：过秦论),” Complete Prose of High Antiquity, the Three Dynasties, Qin, Han, the Three Kingdoms, and Six Dynasties (全上古三代秦汉六朝文) (Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company 中华书局, 1985) 16, 1, 217. 3 Qian Sima (司马迁), “Biographies of Zhang Er and Chen Yu (张耳陈余列传),” Records of the Grand Historian (史记) vol 89. 4 Qian Sima, “House of Chen She (陈涉世家),” Records of the Grand Historian (史记) vol 48. 5 Qian Sima, “Basic Annals of Xiang Yu (项羽本纪),” Records of the Grand Historian (史记) vol 7. 6 Qian Sima, “Biography of Emperor Gaozu (高祖本纪),” Records of the Grand Historian (史记) vol 8. 7 Ye Fan (范晔), “Biography of Huangfu Song (皇甫嵩传),” The Book of Later Han (后汉书) vol 71. 8 You Du (杜佑), “Economics: Field Regulations (食货·田制),” General Reference Book of Historical Institutions and Regulations (通典), vol 1. 9 Ye Fan. “Biography of Cai Yong (蔡邕传),” The Book of Later Han (后汉书) vol 60, Part II. 10 Shou Chen (陈寿), “Biography of Yuan Shao (袁绍传),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 6. 11 Shou Chen, Record of Heroes (英雄记), quoted in Pei Songzhi’s (裴松之) annotations to “Annals of Emperor Wudi (武帝纪),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 1. 12 Shou Chen, “Biography of Cui Yan (崔琰传),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 12. 13 Shou Chen, “Biography of Du Shu (杜恕传),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 16. 14 Zhongluo Wang (王仲荦), A History of the Wei-​Jin and the Southern and Northern Dynasties (魏晋南北朝史) (Shanghai: Shanghai People’s Publishing House 上海人民出版社, 1983), Part I. 15 Charles O Hucker, Charles O Hucker, A Dictionary of Official Titles in Imperial China (Taipei: Southern Materials Center, Inc, 1988), 451. 16 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 482. 17 Shou Chen“Biography of Yuan Shao (袁绍传),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 6. 18 Annals of Nine States (九国春秋), quoted in Pei Songzhi’s (裴松之) annotations to “Annals of Emperor Wudi (武帝纪),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 1. 19 Ye Fan, “Annals of Emperor Gaozu (高祖纪),” The Book of Han (汉书) vol 1. 20 Shou Chen, “Biography of Yuan Shao (袁绍传),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 6. 21 “Biography of Emperor Xiandi (献帝传),” quoted in Pei Songzhi’s (裴松之) annotations to “Biography of Yuan Shao (袁绍传),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 6. 22 Zhiqin Jiao and Chun Fu, “Character Ye, Ye City, and Hostels of Ye (邺·邺市·邺传舍),” Research on Ancient Chinese Capitals 中国古都研究 15, (Shaanxi: Sanqin Press 三秦出版社, 2004), 188.

Ye City’s rise as a regional center  51 23 “Turbid Zhang River (浊漳水),” The Commentary on the Waterway Classic (水经注) vol 10; this geographical monograph quotes from Ancient Places of the Spring and Autumn Period (春秋古地), “Kuiqiu (葵丘) is an ancient place that refers to present-​day Santai west of Ye;” in 1957, Yu Weichao (俞伟超) visited the Ye city site and wrote “A Survey of the Ancient Ye City (邺城调查记),” which was later published in Archaeology (考古), 1 (1963); the paper says, the Golden Phoenix (金凤台) “obviously boasts a pedestal of rammed earth; the pedestal base is littered with clay and Longshan-​Eastern Zhou ceramic pieces; it’s safe to say that the construction of this terrace damaged the earlier relic site;” … “around the pedestal and broken walls are scattered a large number of bricks and tiles, most of which are relics of the Yuan and Ming dynasties; some black tiles of Eastern Wei and Northern Qi and fewer rope-​pattern bricks and tiles from the Warring States period to the Western Han epoch and Northern Dynasties;” In the final analysis, the contributor concluded that from the Warring States period through the Qin and Han dynasties, the Ye city should have been located around the Three Terraces.

2  Ye capital of Cao-​Wei and its layout system

I.  From a regional center to the national capital Yuan Shao’s urban reconstruction and expansion laid a solid foundation for the later development of the Ye city. In fact, the prosperity of this city could not have been possible without Cao Cao’s governance. Though he was a native of Jiao in State Pei (present-​day Bozhou, Anhui province) of the Eastern Han, Cao Cao made Ye his national capital over 1,000 li away from Jiao. In this way, Cao Cao became an influential warlord. But why? It likely arose from the political, military, economic, and geographical conditions in the late Eastern Han epoch. As is well known, Cao Cao developed his own troops by putting down the Yellow Scarf Army and most Yellow Scarf rebels came from the Hebei region. This explains why Cao Cao established his social foundation in the region. It seems that his first visit to Ye occurred in the Chuping period of the reign of Emperor Xiandi of the Eastern Han regime. When the prefectures and commanderies of the Shandong region attacked Dong Zhuo, they hailed Governor of Bohai Commandery Yuan Shao as leader. Cao Cao also engaged in the operation “and thus was granted Valiant General (奋武将军).1”2 When Yuan Shao made plans, Cao Cao visited him, discussing the overall situation of the world. The “Annals of Emperor Wudi” chapter of Records of the Three Kingdoms: Book of Wei says, When Yuan Shao and Cao Cao revolted, Yuan Shao asked, “If things get difficult, what could you rely on?” Cao Cao said, “What’s your idea?” Yuan Shao replied, “As this place is my base, I can rely on the river to the south and block enemies through Yan and Dai to the north. Moreover, I have a large force of ethnic soldiers. With these advantages, I can march south to conquer the world. Who can stop me?” Cao Cao said, “I can tap into the best talents of the world and practice the Tao to conquer everywhere.” He also said, “Did King Tang of Shang and King Wu of Zhou attain kingship at the same place? They each overturned the previous dynasty and founded a new dynasty. If you merely cling to natural barriers and rest assured you will win, it means that you cannot act on an ad-​hoc basis.”3

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  53 Cao Cao definitely knew well the importance of the Hebei region and far outshone Yuan Shao in practical insight. When Dong Zhuo was killed, the regime disintegrated into separatist territories. Mastermind Ju Shou persuaded Yuan Shao, With the soldiers of this commandery and the people of Jizhou, you can reign over Heshuo and shock the world. March east and you can subdue the foxy Yellow-​Scarf Army and take Qingzhou (青州), attack the rebels of Heishan and you can capture Zhang Yan (张燕). Then go north and you can frighten Gongsun [Zan], threaten Rong and Di, and you can make the Xiongnu (匈奴) succumb. In this way, you can occupy the north of the river, unify the four provinces, attract great heroes, and command a force of one million. Escort the emperor to Xijing (西京), then re-​offer sacrifices to the Royal Ancestral Temple in Luoyi (洛邑, aka Luoyang) and you can order the world to conquer unrestored territories. So, who can resist you? Yuan Shao felt overjoyed, “This is what I want to do indeed.”4 Also, this is the strategy of Cao Cao. And when Yuan Shao took Jizhou, Ju Shou advised again, Since the court collapsed and the royal ancestral temple was abandoned, all prefectural and commandery troops have been trying to subdue each other in the name of fighting rebels. None of them cared for the livelihood of the common people. Now that the province regained peace recently, we should invite the incumbent emperor to this city and build a royal palace here. When the Heaven’s Son is in our hands, we could order all other warlords and dukes in His name. We could send troops to put down any opposing force. Thus, no one would dare to oppose us! Yuan Shao felt greatly pleased and tended to accept his advice. However, Guo Tu (郭图) and Chunyu Qiong (淳于琼) said, The Han court has collapsed for quite a long period. Isn’t it difficult to recover the court? Now you have this prefecture and a tremendous troop, why not hail yourself king? It’s better to make yourself king than to invite the emperor here. If the emperor arrives, how would you respond to his order? If you follow the order, your power will be weakened; but if you don’t, your action will be considered disobedient. Anyway, that’s not the best option. Ju Shou said, “It’s righteous to settle the court here. And it’s high time either. If we don’t do, some other will do that ahead of us. Don’t miss the chance, General!” In the end, Yuan Shao failed to accept the advice.5 “Cao Cao, posthumously titled Emperor Taizu, met the Heaven’s Son at Xu and captured

54  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system the Henan region. As a result, all warlords of Guanzhong succumbed. Yuan Shao felt greatly regretful and ordered Cao Cao to move the Heaven’s Son to Juancheng (鄄城), Cao Cao refused him.”6 In this way, Cao Cao got the upper hand in terms of righteousness and political combat. As he made the Henan region his base and worked hard for several years, Cao Cao was able to rival Yuan Shao. In the tenth month of the fifth year (AD 200) of the Jian’an period, Cao Cao defeated Yuan Shao at Guandu (官渡—​now northeast of Zhongmou county, Henan province), annihilating the main troops of the army. In the fifth month of the seventh year (202), Yuan Shao died of a disease. Xin Pi (辛毗) persuaded Cao Cao to attack Hebei, “No rebels are stronger than those in Hebei. If this region is pacified, your troops will have greater power and the whole world will be shocked.”7 Cao Cao readily accepted Xin Pi’s suggestion and attacked Liyang (黎阳—​present-​day northeast of Jun county, Henan province) in the second month of the eighth year (203). In the fourth month, he sent troops to Ye, harvesting the nearby wheat hurriedly. Yuan Shang and Yuan Tan engaged in infighting for Jizhou. At that time, Cao Cao crossed the Huan River, diverting the Q River to White Trench for grain transport. In the fourth month, Cao Cao’s troops had assembled below the Ye city. Cao Cao exerted a twofold action: On the one hand, he deployed the main force, led by Cao Hong (曹洪), to attack Ye. On the other hand, he cut off the city’s supplies and wiped out the guardians around the city. He himself led a force to take Maocheng (毛城) west of Ye. Maocheng, a transfer station on the Shangdang–​Ye supply route, was guarded by Yin Kai (尹楷), head of Wu’an appointed by Yuan Shang. Cao Cao defeated Yin Kai and took Maocheng, cutting off the supply lines. And on his return trip, Cao Cao defeated Yuan Shang’s general Ju Gu (沮鹄) and captured Handan. Yiyang (易阳), She (涉), and other counties surrendered without ever having been attacked. Cao Cao deployed some troops in these newly occupied areas, controlling the upper reaches of the Zhang River and ambushing Yuan Shang’s reinforcement according to the advantageous terrain. At the same time, he assisted the besieging soldiers in serving his strategic deployment. The strategy worked well. In the fourth month of the ninth year of the Jian’an period, Cao Cao built earthen mounds and tunnels outside the city, initiating a fierce assault. However, they didn’t succeed because the city walls were immensely strong. Moreover, general Shen Pei ordered trenches to be dug along the city walls, sabotaging Cao Cao’s plan of tunnel warfare. In the fifth month, Cao Cao destroyed the earthen mounds and tunnels, digging trenches around the city walls to flood the whole city. In the seventh month, Yuan Shang heard that Ye was in jeopardy and led a force of 10,000 along the West Mountain. When the news arrived, Cao Cao felt greatly pleased because his main force was stationed northwest of Ye. Even before he approached Ye, Yuan Shang was defeated. Then Yuan Shang fled to Zhongshan (present-​day Dingzhou, Hebei province) and thus Cao Cao confiscated all his baggage, seals, ribbons, tallies, hatchets, and clothes and showed the guardians of Ye these articles. As a result, the morale collapsed and the Officer of the East

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  55 Gate Shen Rong betrayed his uncle Shen Pei, opening the city gate to welcome Cao Cao in. After six month’s fighting, Cao Cao finally captured Ye. His strategies of flooding and besieging were vicious yet successful. Let’s look at Wei’s folk song “Great Feats (定武功),” His Majesty scored great feats, united the region around the Yellow River. The river roars and rolls from dawn to dusk. Now the Yuan clan declined and ended up in two brothers fighting each other. As the Zhang River broke the dike, everyone in the city got submerged like a fish and had no time to care for his family. The guarding troops had no alternative but to sue for peace. As the attempt failed, everyone of them felt greatly worried. The guarding troops collapsed and the lord and his men fled north. The Ye city was taken and State Wei was established. It has been hard to take power from ancient times. Let’s heave a deep sigh!8 The Battle of Ye held the key to Cao Cao’s achieving military success, and his strategies and tactics are worth summarizing. Ordinary histories usually pay excessive attention to the Battle of Guandu rather than this battle. But actually, it is the latter that won the Hebei region for the warlord and paved the way for his reunification of northern China, though the other battle enabled him to defeat the much stronger Yuan Shao and vie for control over the world. The conquest of Ye provided Cao Cao a city of tremendous significance for his military ambition. In the ninth year of the Jian’an period, Cao Cao served as Governor of Jizhou and established the capital in Ye from then on. Even so, the safety of the city relied on that of the surrounding area. To guard this city, he had to exterminate any hidden hazard from behind (Hebei region), the threat of the remnants of Yuan Shao’s force and invasion of an ethnic group called Wuhuan. In the 12th month, Cao Cao attacked Yuan Tan (袁谭) who hurriedly left Pingyuan (平原, now Pingyuan county, Shandong province) for Nanpi. He gathered his troops guarding the Qing River (清河). In the first month of the tenth year (205), Cao Cao subjugated Nanpi and executed Yuan Tan, forcing the surrender of all the cities within his territory. Yuan Shang and Yuan Xi (袁熙) fled to Liaoxi where Wuhuan reigned. In the eighth month of the 11th year (206), Cao Cao excavated Pinglu Channel and Quanzhou Channel, connecting the Hutuo River, Gu River (also called 沙河), Ju River,

56  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system and Lu River in preparation for grain transport for the northern expedition against Wuhuan. The following summer, Cao Cao assaulted Wuhuan and defeated Wuhuan chief Tadun (蹋顿) in the White Wolf Mountain (白狼山—​ now Dayang Mountain east of Harqin Left Wing Mongol Autonomous County, Liaoning province), capturing 200,000 prisoners. Yuan Shang and Yuan Xi fled to the territory of Gongsun Kang (公孙康), Governor of Liaodong Commandery. But unexpectedly, Gongsun Kang killed them with a trick and sent their heads to Cao Cao. Conquest of Hebei and subjugation of Wuhuan were really important for the consolidation of Ye city’s supreme position. In the following decade or so, Ye had no threat from the north until the advent of the Yongxing period (304–​306) of the Western Jin epoch. Why did Cao Cao choose Ye as the capital city? Apart from its geographical, conventional, historical, and social conditions, Cao Cao considered a whole set of factors such as absence of natural barriers and possibility of adapting himself to changing circumstances. This seems extremely obvious if we take a look at the “Annals of Emperor Wudi” in volume 1 of Records of the Three Kingdoms and “Biography of Yuan Shao” in volume 6. The city possesses a vital location and is easily accessible from any direction, thanks to its flat terrain, which facilitates changing of strategies on an ad hoc basis. In other words, he could march or retreat whenever necessary. Establishment of the capital is the concern of each and every dynasty mainly because it has been regarded as the basis for successful supremacy by all founding emperors. With this in mind, most emperors selected invincible places as their capitals. Instead, Cao Cao thought laterally, and his practice scored tremendous success in the transition from the Han dynasty to the Wei.

II.  Construction of the Ye capital In the ninth year of the Jian’an period, Cao Cao regarded Ye as his political and military stronghold. Based in the Hebei region, Cao Cao was able to conquer the whole of China. In the 13th year (208), Cao Cao served as Counselor-​in-​Chief (丞相). In the fifth month of the 18th year (213), Emperor Xiandi of the Eastern Han titled Cao Cao as Duke of Wei, governing Jizhou’s ten commanderies: (1) Hedong (河东). (2) Henei (河内). (3) Wei (魏郡). (4) Zhao (赵国). (5) Changshan (常山). (6) Zhongshan (中山). (7) Julu (巨鹿). (8) Anping (安平). (9) Ganling (甘陵). (10) Pingyuan (平原). Ye was the official seat of Jizhou, the location of Cao Cao’s mansion, and the capital of his state. In the 11th month, he set up Imperial Secretaries (尚书), Palace Attendants (侍中), and Six Ministers (六卿).9 It is the first year using the calendar system of Wei. “Inscription on the Hall of Literary Prosperity (文昌殿铭)” mentions “in the fourth year of Wei.” In the 21st year (216) of Wei, Cao Cao hailed himself king and Ye actually became the state capital, though Xu was still the nominal political center. Cao Cao had been eager to make Ye his state capital. As soon as the city was subjugated, he started construction. From the eighth month of the ninth year

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  57 to the 13th year of the Jian’an period, only minor civil works were completed due to incessant wars. During that period, the main focus of construction was renovating the damaged city walls and gates and making overall design planning of the city. According to the street layout of the Eastern Han epoch, the inner city was widened east and the new areas were reserved for the Outer Court and Inner Court; at the same time, the area from the east of the Inner City to the east city wall was determined as the Noble Quarter. The area south of Dongxi Boulevard within the city largely followed the layout of the Eastern Han. Also, transformation of Yuan Shao’s official mansion, expansion of West Garden, renovation of city walls, and consolidation/​heightening of city gates, among other measures, were taken and known as Phase I Subproject of Ye’s Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Project. After the 13th year of the Jian’an period, Cao Cao commenced building large projects according to his own design planning. First, he excavated Xuanwu Pond northwest of Ye to train his water troops. It was expected that the project would last one or two years. As a matter of fact, building up massive mud through excavation proved to be no good for defense of the city. For this reason, Cao Cao erected Bronze Bird Terrace in the northwest part of the city, using the excavated earth. The terrace project spanned two years from the 15th year (210) to the 17th year (212) of the Jian’an period. Next year another two projects were completed, the first being a water channel. Cao Cao “diverted the Zhang River east into the Qing and Huan Rivers to transport provisions.”10 This project was really important for city construction because it could not only improve the urban transportation, but also laid a foundation for municipal water supply and sewage works. The second was Golden Phoenix Terrace. Its construction lasted from the 13th year (208) to the 18th year (213), with the main works being implemented around the periphery of the city. After the 18th year of the Jian’an period, the city construction moved into Phase III. Aside from Ice Well Terrace (冰井台), many large buildings, especially royal palaces and halls, were constructed within the city. As Cao Cao was granted Duke of Wei, the palaces and halls became larger. Indeed, Cao Cao had real power in the court, his palace mainly including Outer Court and Inner Court. As for construction, a well-​considered plan was put into practice. First, they dug the Changming Channel (长明沟)11 to divert the Zhang River to pass beneath the Bronze Bird Terrace and divided its branches to meander through the halls and streets. The excavated earth served two purposes: palace/​hall construction, and then pond backfilling and pedestal construction upon completion of palaces and halls. It is important that the excavated earth should be carried away via the channel prior to palace or hall completion. Most building blocks were timber from the mountain forest of Shangdang. The “Biography of Liang Xi (梁习传)” in volume 15 of Records of the Three Kingdoms says that in the 18th year (213) of the Jian’an period, Cao Cao ordered Liang Xi to fetch large amounts of wood from Shangdang for construction of “Ye’s royal palaces and halls.” Lying in the upper basin

58  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system of the Zhang River, Shangdang had a wealth of pristine forests. After years of woodcutting, some small pristine forests and large natural secondary forests were still in good condition. Counselor-​in-​Chief Cao Cao’s Assistant Advisor (军议掾), Gaotang Long (高堂隆), also took part in the royal palace planning. As the author of Gazetteer of Xiangtai Prefecture quoted from volume 8 in Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period, Cao Cao “employed Jizhou’s manpower to carry timber from Shangdang’s forests and make impressive, stately buildings such as Hall of Literary Prosperity, Hall of Hearing Political Decisions, Golden Tiger Terrace, Bronze Bird Terrace, Palace of Chirping Crane, and Catalpa Neighborhood.” Cao Cao decided to fetch timber from Shangdang rather than the much nearer Ye, which reflects his intention to protect the nearby forests. He did not necessarily realize the importance of ecological balance in the city, but actually had long-​term eco-​ plans, such as urban vegetation, and civil defense engineering. As soon as the palaces and halls were all completed, he started building Pan Palace (泮宫) in the southern area of the city in the 22nd year (217) of the Jian’an period and basically completed the city’s main buildings a year later. Overall, the city construction had taken 14 years at that stage. The architectural thought behind the city construction has to be attributed to Cao Cao himself. The buildings in the city were “all erected according to his own ideas,” as Pei Songzhi quoted from The Book of Wei in his annotation to “Annals of Emperor Wudi” of Records of the Three Kingdoms. As he advocated reunification of the world, this warlord carried his ideas into practice, thus contriving a layout of central axis-​oriented symmetry and neat-​looking planning. The entire urban territory was divided into two halves (south and north) by East Street and West Street. The northern half consisted of the West Garden [also known as Bronze Bird Garden (铜雀苑)], Palace Complex, and Noble Quarter from west to east; in contrast, the south half included the Residential Quarter, Handicraft Area, and Business Area. The Grand Court was located in the heart of the northern half along the south–​north central axis, which proves to be the location of the Purple Tenuity Enclosure (紫微垣) constellation, another name for the Purple Tenuity Palace. The main hall of the palace, surrounded by gardens, ordinary residences, government offices, and palaces, is known as Wenchang, which refers to a six-​star constellation of literary prosperity, with two stars being encompassed by the other stars; west of the city wall were erected Three Terraces, which stand for three Taoist mountain realms: Penglai (蓬莱), Fangzhang (方丈), and Yingzhou (瀛洲). Apparently, this architectural layout blends the traditional Chinese philosophy with human–​nature harmony and Taoist thought. Ye of Cao-​Wei still continued Yuan Shao’s city layout, consisting of an Inner City and Bailey. The difference consists in Cao Cao’s east expansion of the inner city, with some urban areas east of Guangdemen Street (广德门街) being included in the inner city, and the government office, inner court, and harem being built in the newly expanded areas.

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  59

III.  Buildings and capital system of the Ye city of Cao-​Wei (I)  City walls and gates In the ninth year of the Jian’an period, the city walls and gates were damaged during the war between Cao Cao and Shen Pei. As Cao Cao took Ye, he started renovating it. The author quoted from “Book IV. Proceedings of Government in the Different Months (月令)” of The Book of Rites in the “Bailey” chapter in volume 24 of Writings for Elementary Instruction, “In the first month of autumn, … orders are given to … repair a city and its bailey. In the second month of autumn, … it is allowable to build a city and its bailey.”12 As the autumn is a suitable time for construction, Cao Cao started building city walls in the autumn after the conquest of Ye. There is no record of the construction, except for the widths of the city gates. Hu Sansheng also said in his annotation to History as a Mirror, “North Ye City was first built by Yuan Shao and later expanded by Cao Cao.” Historical texts show us that the renovation or reinforcement of the city walls and the expansion of the city gates may well have been implemented at the same time and that their completion should be no later than that of Bronze Bird Terrace in the 15th year of the Jian’an period. Today there is no account of the specific length, width, and circumference of Ye during the Cao-Wei dynasty. Here I make a prediction from the changes in the Eastern Han and Later Zhao times. The dug trench encircled the city for 40 li (equal to modern-​day 28 li) and thus the circumference of the city must be less than 28 li. In the Later Zhao dynasty, Shi Hu’s Ye “was seven li long (east–​west) and five li wide (north-​south),” which means the circumference was 24 li. According to the measurement system of the Western Jin epoch, 1 li approximately equaled 435 m;13 24 li was equal to 20.88 li in modern terms. Real-​world archaeology shows that the area from Ye’s east wall to Golden Tiger Terrace was generally 2,400 m long (2,620 m with the protruding south section of the west wall included) and 1,700 m wide,14 with its circumference being about 17 li. Judging from this data, few changes occurred to the area of the city from the Eastern Han epoch to the Later Zhao dynasty. Also, archaeology confirms that the term “Qiwu City” does not refer to definite dimensions, but to the ratio of length to width. Explorations have shown that the city walls were made of rammed earth, and foundation ditches were dug, and that the south city wall was 16.35 m in width, the east city wall was 15–​18 m in width and the excavated wall was 15.35 m in width, and the south city wall was about 16 m in width. Of the four city corners, only the southeast corner has been discovered. The excavated city wall indicates that the city was first built during the late Eastern Han epoch and Cao-​Wei time and went through reconstruction or rehabilitation during the Sixteen States and the later Eastern Wei and Northern Qi.15 Also, “Measured Drawing of the Relic Site of North Ye City (邺北城遗址实测图)” was painted. In the winter of 1983, researchers drilled to explore the west wall of North Ye City and

60  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system moved south along the rammed earth layer of the foundation from the site of Golden Phoenix Terrace. We moved about 100 m past the North Dike of the Zhang River and discovered the rammed earth belt is slanting southwest. … Then we passed the southwest half of Yezhen village and went further south, … We finally reached a small peach grove at the southwest corner outside the village and turned east. Definitely, this is the southwest corner of the entire city.16 The south section of the west wall of the city has an obliquely protruding wall, which is a new discovery, unseen in literature. This is the architectural design adopted in the initial construction or later expansion of the city. Later, Cao Cao built three terraces in the northwest of Ye, with their protrusions opposite the obliquely protruding wall of the south wall for protection of West Gate. Xu Guangji (徐光冀) made Restoration Drawing of the Planar Layout of Ye City of Cao-​Wei (曹魏邺城平面复原示意图), which roughly shows the contour layout of the city during that period of history. However, the city gates and gardens were noted names of Later Zhao of the Sixteen States. The city wall of Ye was also a haunt for Cao Cao and his sons and other men of letters. Cao Pi wrote in “Rhapsody of Ascending the City (登城赋),” In the month of early spring, a new year has met a favorable quanyu (权舆). A zephyr blows gently, bringing the people enormous comfort. We ride in carriages east and ascend the city tower, looking gleefully as far as the eye reaches. Indeed, there are some inviting sights: First, the plain afar is vast and bright. Second, the fields are being cultivated and wheat seedlings cover the fields, hills and scatter over roadsides. These young plants grow luxuriantly, sprouting thick new leaves and stems. Water is gurgling in the channels and fish is swarming east down the river. The mellow zephyr caresses our faces while the sun is going down. As we see the former residence, it is high time to get back. May such peaceful governance based on non-​action last long!17 The month of early spring is rightly the first month of spring. The term “quanyu” (权舆) means the beginning of a year. As Mao’s Commentaries of

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  61 the Book of Poetry (毛诗传) says, “The term quanyu (权舆) refers to a beginning or an inception.” This rhapsody tells us how warm it was in those days. The southeast corner of the capital of Cao-​Wei still had a turret as in the Eastern Han epoch. The turret is also known as a tower. Wang Can (王粲) wrote in “Rhapsody of Missing a Friend (思友赋),” When I mount this lofty tower at the city corner and take a panorama, I feel as if I were a bird soaring down.18 The aforesaid tower is the turret at the southeast corner of the city. Chen Lin once wrote a poem, Living in leisure I feel disconsolate, so I ride in my cart to visit friends. We wander together along the stream, and climb the heights of the city wall. To the east we gaze at the farmers’ fields, and backward we cast our gaze at the homesteads.19 This poem vividifes the great sights that came in view when they toured the east city wall. These lines also depict the sights that anyone could enjoy while ascending the east city wall. During the Eastern Han epoch, Cao Cao expanded the seven city gates of Ye: First, there were two gates located on the north wall. Second, there was one gate located on the east wall. Third, there was one gate located on the west wall. Fourth, there were three gates on the south wall. However, the gate names were still in use in the Later Zhao dynasty. Archaeologists explored a 22 m wide gate relic site 800 m north of the southeast corner of the city site. And there is also a barbican outside the gate. The gate in question is East Gate of North Ye City in the Eastern Han epoch and later Cao-​Wei dynasty. The “Annals of Emperor Wendi (文帝纪)” chapter in volume 2 of Records of the Three Kingdoms: Book of Wei, on the gengwu (庚午) day of the first year (220) of the Yankang period, “Great General Xiahou Dun (夏侯惇) died.” Pei Songzhi annotated, “King [Wei, namely Cao Pi] visited East Gate of Ye in mourning.” Sun Sheng (孙盛) said, “In terms of ritual, Heaven’s Son should express condolences of a noble man of the same surname outside the royal ancestral temple. It is not appropriate to do that at the city gate.” History shows that Cao-​Wei’s royal ancestral temple nestled north of Dongxi Boulevard within East Gate. When he was alive, Xiahou Dun dwelt in the Noble Quarter at the northeast corner of the city; after his death, the general seems to have been buried northeast of Ye. For this reason, Cao Pi escorted the deceased general’s coffin to East Gate to make condolences. Since Cao Pi did not take the throne back then, he mourned the general at the East Gate. The gate was still called East Gate, which tells us that Jianchun Gate was the

62  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system Later Zhao name. Each time there was an expedition, Cao Cao set out from the wharf beside the stone bridge outside the East Gate. Let’s take two poems as an example, Wang Can wrote in “Accompany Military Campaigns: 4 (从军诗),” In the morning we left from the bridge at capital Ye, by the dusk we crossed the White Horse Ford. I roam along the dike by the river, and gaze at our troops on both sides. Ships, one after another, exceed tens of thousands, soldiers, full armored, greater in number. Marching along that southeast road we would surely strike a complete victory.20 Liu Zhen (刘桢) also wrote, “At dawn, our troops marched from east of Ye; at dusk, we reached the bank of the Ming River (溟水). The three armies were as dense as Deng forest, many warriors attacking Xiaozhuang (萧庄).”21 Cao Pi went hunting around the stone bridge outside the East Gate, which is reflected in his lines “We ride in a well-​screened carriage out of the palace of Ye, hunting animals beside the East Bridge. Then we set many a net, with imperial banners and streamers as thick as a cloud. All of a sudden, I bend a bow, shooting two elks with one arrow.”22 In the Han dynasty, this gate was also referred to as Upper East Gate (上东门). Three South Gates (南三门): They are the three gates on the south wall of Ye of Cao-​Wei. The middle gate is Zhang Gate, which still used the previous name from the Eastern Han dynasty. It is a pity that the names of East and West First Gates have fallen into oblivion. As Gazetteer of the World During the Taiping Period quotes from Record of the Ye City, When Emperor Taizu of Wei established the capital in Ye, each street within the city has a Scarlet Gatetower (赤阙) and the gate on the west of the south wall is called Fengyang Gate where there are two phoenixes, one flying into the Zhang River and the other having its feet stuck in a lock. There is a local song, Fengyang Gatetower blocks half the southern sky and there is a golden phoenix chirping alone on the gate. Its partner is gone and this phoenix would fly away too but for the iron chain locking it. The first line of the song visualizes the height of the gate. The Later Zhao gate of the same name was influenced by the gate of Cao-​Wei. Besides, there is a pattern of “Two Gatetowers and Twin Phoenixes on the Engraved Stone (汉画像石城门楼凤图)” [Boston Museum of Fine Arts]. Hence, it seems that the Han-​dynasty style of these gatetowers has close ties with the Ye city of the

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  63 later Cao-​Wei dynasty. Liang Sicheng (梁思成) said in A Pictorial History of Chinese Architecture (中国建筑史), the “Two Gatetowers and Twin Phoenixes on the Engraved Stone (汉画像石城门楼凤图)”23 are comparable to their counterparts at First West Gate on the south wall of Ye city. From the autumn of 1983 to 1984, archaeologists drilled holes along the South [Ye] City without discovering the relic sites of the city gates, but their location can be determined according to three discovered south–​north boulevards. Zhang Gate was at the center of the south city wall; First East Gate (东头一门), namely Later Zhao’s Guangyang Gate (广阳门), about 950 m east of Zhang Gate; First West Gate (西头一门), namely Later Zhao’s Fengyang Gate (凤阳门) 900 m west of Zhang Gate. Once, Cao Cao tested which of his sons, Cao Pi and Cao Zhi, was more intelligent by ordering them to leave through South Gate and then asking the gate officer to close the gate. Through Yang Xiu’s (杨修) assistance, Cao Zhi went out in the name of Cao Cao’s edict while Cao Pi failed to go out. The gate seems to be the First East Gate. West Gate (西门): Cao-​Wei rebuilt the gate based on the efforts of the Eastern Han dynasty to connect three terraces and West Garden (西苑) and Grand Court Palace (大朝宫殿). Walk out of this gate and the south–​ north path on the eastern piedmont of the Taihang Mountain will come into sight. It is a vital post for Cao Cao and his sons, officials and nobles, and the gentry. Cao Cao started an expedition or a patrol at the gate and returned through the gate after a battle. Wang Can wrote of Cao Cao’s triumph in the expedition to Guanzhong in “Accompany Military Campaigns: Five Poems, One (从军行五首·其一),” “The Lord entered Ye amid songs and dances” through the gate. The same gate also witnessed the outings and hunts among other activities of scholars like Cao Pi, Cao Zhi, Wang Can, Chen Lin, Xu Gan (徐干), Liu Zhen (刘桢), and Ruan Yu (阮瑀). Their poems give vivid depictions of those leisure activities. Cao Pi wrote in “Poem at Xuanwu Pond (于玄武陂作诗),” “when we leave the West City in a carriage.” Wang Can composed a poem, “Singing and dancing we enter Ye City.” West Gate had been the gateway for officials. West Gate of Ye of the Wei and Jin dynasties is the Jinming Gate (金明门) of Later Zhao. The excavated Dongxi Boulevard of the relic site of Ye suggests its specific location—​150 m or so south of Golden Phoenix Terrace. As Pei Songzhi quoted from Tales of Emperor Wudi of Wei when annotating the “Biography of Cao Zhi the King Si of Chen (陈思王植传)” in volume 19 of Records of the Three Kingdoms, “When Cao Zhi, titled Marquis of Linzi, wanted to go out, Sima Gate was opened for him to reach Golden Gate.” Golden Gate should be the West Gate because gold/​ metal (金) refers to west according to the Chinese doctrine of yin-​yang and five elements. Two North Gates (北二门): There is little record of the north gates of Cao-​ Wei. Traditionally, the north gate is open to ghosts and thus often closed. It wouldn’t be opened unless a sacrifice was offered to spirits. So, this gate is least visited and few texts mention it. Ye has two North Gates: First East

64  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system Gate, namely Later Zhao’s Guangde Gate (广德门), the width of which is 20 m and the site is about 1,000 m from the east city wall. First West Gate is Later Zhao’s Jiu Gate (厩门), with its exact site being uncertain. The two gates adjoin palace gardens and noble quarters and therefore are inaccessible to ordinary people. These gates would be opened only if an accident or incident occurs. (II)  Three Terraces Golden Tiger Terrace, Bronze Bird Terrace, and Ice Well Terrace, altogether called Three Terraces, are located in succession from south to north, using the city wall as their foundations. The neighboring terraces are “60 steps away from each other.”24 In 1986, researchers verified the distance between Bronze Bird Terrace and Golden Phoenix Terrace as 83 m and therefore longer than recorded in historic texts. Zuo Si depicted the terraces in “Wei Capital Rhapsody,” On the right there are the vegetable garden and a circular pond, low fields, and high halls. Thoroughwort holms grow rich and lush; stony rapids bubble and froth. Fine branches hang with fruit; light leaves scatter their fragrance. With its racing tortoises and leaping fish, one seems to be peering down on Lüliang. The speedway winds and twists under the fruit trees; interlocking galleries with contiguous roofs cross back and forth. Soaring stairways, two wagons wide, lead directly west; the Three Terraces, standing in a row, rise rugged and tall. With high platforms rearing up from shadowy bases, they resemble the sheered slopes of Mt Hua. Above are imbricated ridgepoles and double downspouts; below are ice chambers frozen and dark. The surrounding verandas cleave the sky; the red courtyard looks down on the soaring vortex. These storied structures are so tall and steep, pure dust floats and drifts among them. Cloud birds walk the eaves with heads held high; their powerful wings seem engraved on the blue empyrean. Thunderstorms, dark and gloomy, reach not even halfway up the tower; the blazing sun encages its light in silk latticed windows. Practicing his gait, the emperor ascends and descends the staircase; garbed in spring clothes, he ambles freely about. From here the eight limits can be encompassed by a tiny eye; and the myriad things are seen as equal in a single morning.25

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  65 Jin-​dynasty scholar Zhang Zai (张载) annotated, “There are three terraces located west of Bronze Bird Terrace: First, Bronze Bird Terrace. Second, Golden Tiger Terrace (renamed Golden Phoenix Terrace by Later Zhao) on the south. Third, Ice Well Terrace on the north. Obviously, the first terrace was flanked by the other two terraces.” The “Turbid Zhang River” chapter of The Commentary on the Waterway Classic says, “In the northwest of the city, there are three terraces, all of which use the city wall as their foundations and tower as high as hills.” Lu Hui’s Record of Ye is cited in the “Hebei dao (河北道)” chapter in volume 8 of Writings for Elementary Instruction, “Emperor Wudi of Wei erected three terraces in the northwest of Ye: First, Bronze Bird Terrace in the middle. Second, Golden Animal Terrace, aka Golden Tiger Terrace (Tiger replaced by Animal considering the naming-​ taboo of the Tang dynasty) in the south. Third, Ice Well Terrace in the north.” Wang Xianqian (王先谦) quoted Li Shan’s “Annotations to Wei Capital Rhapsody” of Selections of Refined Literature when annotating the “Turbid Zhang River” chapter of The Commentary on the Waterway Classic, “In the west of Bronze Bird Garden, there are three terraces, namely Bronze Bird Terrace (middle),” “Golden Tiger Terrace (south),” and “Ice Well Terrace (north).” The extant relics and the changing terrain indicate that the terraces were laid out northeastward instead of being located along a straight line. Archaeological excavation has shown that the northeast corner of Golden Phoenix Terrace is opposite the southeast corner of Bronze Bird Terrace, which means that the line involving the three terraces has a slight gradient. Bronze Bird Terrace, which lies atop a high mound, is the largest; of the two smaller terraces Golden Tiger Terrace lies southwest of Ice Well Terrace. The three terraces were all built on the city wall. There were still terraces or towers built on the three terraces, which make each a building complex, as described in a line “Soaring stairways, two wagons wide, lead directly west.” Go up the stairs west and you could ascend Bronze Bird Terrace. As soon as you stand on this terrace, you could easily visit the other two terraces along the staircase south or north of Bronze Bird Terrace. Further archaeological excavation discovered that there is a slope east of the relic site of Golden Phoenix Terrace. It is presumed that each terrace features a sloping path of staircases. Each terrace has a tower and the towers are connected by elevated passageways (飞阁). Indeed, Cao Zhi vividedly depicted the majesty of the pavilion, “glimpsing elevated passways over the west city wall.” Standing atop Bronze Bird Terrace, Cao Pi praised the scenery, “Strolling here affords us a panoramic view of the scenery below. Oh, along the city corner swashes the mighty Zhang River.” The Three Terraces are laid out from southwest to northeast at the northwest corner of North Ye City, facing the Zhang River. In other words, this river flows northeast past the city. Bronze Bird Terrace: Its construction started in the winter of the 15th year (210) of the Jian’an period and ended in the spring of the 17th year (212). The “Biography of Cao Zhi the King Chensi” chapter in volume 19 of Records of the Three Kingdoms says that, as soon as the Bronze Terrace was built,

66  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system Emperor Taizu asked his sons to write rhapsodies. Cao Zhi held a brush and instantly composed “Rhapsody on Ascending the Terrace (登台赋),” which made Taizu feel greatly astonished.” The rhapsody says, Following father, His Majesty the King, I tour around the city and visit the Storied Terrace to unwind. The mighty Office of the Counselor-​in-​Chief nearby comes in sight and the stately halls for dukes and princes stand up. High city gates and hall gates tower into the vault of a cerulean sky, with Twin Watch Towers floating atop the zenith of the empyrean. I stand atop a sumptuous pavilion piercing the sky, glimpsing elevated passways over the west city wall. The Zhang River ripples gently nearby and the Orchard trees bear huge fruit far off. The coming zephyr feels balmy and tender, with tuneful birdsong being heard hither and thither. Our clan has achieved glorious kingship and takes great pride in achieving this. Spread benevolence and generosity to benefit the world, pay earnest allegiance to the Heaven’s Son at Xuchang. In the past, both Duke Huan of Qi and Duke Wen of Jin carved out a peaceful era for the people. However, neither can be on a par with my father! So propitious, so marvelous! Bring benefit to the people far away. Serve the Han court with all our heart and soul to maintain eternal peace of the world. The King’s mind is as broad as heaven and earth; his unselfish virtue even outshines the sun and moon. May His Majesty enjoy everlasting dignity and enjoy longevity like the Lord of East!26 Obviously, this work was written in the spring because its lines depict such vernal sights, coinciding with what Cao Pi described in his rhapsody of the same name, In the spring of the 17th year of the Jian’an period, I and my brother ascended Bronze Bird Terrace along with His Majesty the King. Father ordered each of us to compose a rhapsody. My rhapsody goes as follows: As we ascend this high terrace, we look into the distance afar off and feel how beautiful and splendid the terrace is. Flying pavilions poke their crests into the firmament; multi-​storied towers support the heaven. We stroll around at leisure

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  67 and let our eyes gaze at the West Mountain, where there are ravines and gullies overgrown with trees, shrubs, and grasses. A breeze tenderly nudges our sleeves when some birds pour their tuneful songs into our ears. Strolling here affords us a panoramic view of the scenery below. Oh, along the city corner splashes the mighty Zhang River!27 These two rhapsodies attest the fact that Bronze Bird Terrace was completed in the spring of the 17th year of the Jian’an period. Cao Cao named the terrace that way to express his wishes for a bumper harvest. Emperor Jianwen of Southern Liang Dynasty wrote, in “Response to Emperor Wudi’s Royal Field Poem (和梁武帝藉田诗),” Carp is a good omen and Bronze Bird forebodes this year’s bumper harvest. So, there is no need for a hydrologist like Zheng Guo or Ximen Bao.28 The Bronze Bird Terrace boasts a height of ten zhang. According to Cao Zhi’s line “I tour around and visit the terrace to unwind” and Cao Pi’s line “As we ascend this high terrace, we look into the distance afar off,” the terrace consists of multiple tiers built on the city wall. And there are stately buildings such as houses or towers on the terrace. “These storied structures are so tall and steep, pure dust floats and drifts among them.” A Bronze Bird on the terrace-​tower looked as if it was raising its head and fluttering its wings in the blue sky. Zhang Zai said in his “Annotations to Wei Capital Rhapsody,” the terrace has “101 houses.” When collating The Commentary on the Waterway Classic, Wang Xianqian (王先谦) quoted Li Shan’s “Annotations to Wei Capital Rhapsody,” “Bronze Bird Terrace is ten zhang high and consists of 101 houses.” The “Turbid Zhang River” of The Commentary on the Waterway Classic says, “In the center, there is Bronze Bird Terrace featuring a height of ten zhang and 101 houses.” The terrace has towers, pavilions, and houses, the roof of which are decorated with bronze birds. This practice was seemingly initiated by Emperor Wudi of Western Han. According to Tales of Emperor Wudi of Han (汉武故事), the emperor “cast a bronze phoenix as high as five zhang and decorated with gold before being placed on the house-​roof.”29 Cao Pi’s lines of Rhapsody of Ascent to the Terrace “Flying pavilions poke their crests into the firmament; multi-​storied towers support the heaven” indicate that there were pavilions and towers on the terrace. Moreover, both Wang Can and Zao Ju (枣据) of the Jin dynasty composed rhapsodies of the same name. Wang Can wrote, As I cast my gaze around, I just find there is no tower comparable to this commodious edifice.

68  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system It touches a branch of the Clear Zhang River and leans against a zigzagging sandbank. The tower borders Taomu (陶牧) on the north and Tomb of King Zhao of Chu of the Spring and Autumn period (昭丘) on the west. Judging from this quote, what they mounted is a tower of Bronze Bird Terrace. Such writings have a far-​reaching impact on later literature. Scholars quoted Wang Sengqian’s “Discussion on the Verses of Three Clear Shang Modes (论三调歌表)” in the “Record of Music (乐志)” chapter in volume 19 of Book of Song, “The presently popular songs of Clear-​Shang modes were originated from the literary pieces made at Bronze Bird Terrace.” In the 24th year (219) of the Jian’an period, Cao Cao left a will saying that concubines and female artists should perform against the screen on every 15th day of each month and his sons, daughters, and their families should ascend the terrace to view the West Mausoleum where he would be buried. The building materials of Bronze Bird Terrace were special, and particularly the house tiles were treasured by later generations. So, Wu Qi (吴淇) said in volume 5 of Treatise on Selection of Six Dynasties Poetry (六朝诗选定论), “All buildings made by Emperor Wudi are sophisticated and fantastic. As for Bronze Bird Terrace, a mere tile is worth 100 taels of gold.” Scholars used the extant tiles as ink-​slabs, which are known as the famous Inkstones of Bronze Bird Terrace Tile (铜雀瓦砚). Below the terrace were located culverts. The “Turbid Zhang River” in volume 10 of The Commentary on the Waterway Classic, In the past, the Zhang River was diverted to enter the west of the city, flow east and move below Bronze Bird Terrace before becoming a subterranean river. The eastern water course is called Changming Channel. The channel went south until Zhiche Gate and Emperor Wudi of Wei intercepted the water at North Palace. The palace had a Hall of Literary Prosperity, being flanked by two branches of the channel. The branches were diverted so that water could flow below the streets. In the end, the water flowed out of Shidou Weir (石窦堰) blending into the Huang River. So, Cao Cao himself said in “Rhapsody of Ascent to the Terrace,” Divert the Changming to make water flow below the streets. The term ‘Changming’ refers to this channel. Archaeologists excavated the earth to the southern side of the relic site of Bronze Bird Terrace, finding only some rubble, after the first attempt at surveying the irrigating gate of Changming Channel failed at the depth of 5 m underground. Golden Tiger Terrace: This terrace was located 83 m south of Bronze Bird Terrace30 and dubbed “South Terrace (南台).” The “Annals of Emperor Wudi” chapter of Records of the Three Kingdoms says, “[The emperor] erected

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  69 Golden Tiger Terrace” in the 18th year of the Jian’an period. This terrace is eight zhang high and has “135 houses.”31 In Later Zhao, Shi Hu renamed it “Golden Phoenix Terrace.” Archaeological exploration has revealed that the relic site of the terrace is about 100 m wide, east to west. On the east side of Golden Tiger Terrace and Bronze Bird Terrace, cloud-​pattern tiles of the Cao-​Wei dynasty were discovered. And on the eastern slope of Golden Tiger Terrace, a broken stone stele with an inscription was discovered. The stele is 30 centimeter long, 20 cm wide, and 12 cm thick and features an inscription: “At the fourth [row] of the north side of the eastern face of the terrace, … It is six zhang and three chi in length south to north, … A big one may be four or five dou in width.” The inscription falls within the clerical script that seems to be the style of Cao-​Wei. At the same time, pottery human-​ face decorations were unearthed. Such half-​round tile decorations can also be found in the relic site of Xu of the Jian’an period of the Eastern Han epoch.32 Therefore, the unearthed objects must have come from the Cao-​Wei kingdom. Ice Well Terrace: This was located north of Bronze Bird Terrace and also named ‘North Terrace.’ When it comes to the dating of this terrace, there are two versions. First, the 18th year (213) of the Jian’an period. Record of Ye holds that, “Both Golden Tiger Terrace and Ice Well Terrace were built in the 18th year of the Jian’an period.” Second, in the 19th year (214) of the Jian’an period, Yang Lengjia said in Stories of the Ye Capital, “Ice Well Terrace was built in the 19th year [of the Jian’an period].” Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period says, “In the 18th year of the Jian’an period, Cao Cao built Golden Phoenix (Tiger) Terrace and next year built this terrace [Ice Well Terrace].” The terrace gets this name because it has a wide Ice Cellar (凌室). “Ice Well Terrace is also eight zhang high.” The terrace is home to “145 houses, with an ice room where there are several wells storing ice and stone coal (石墨). Besides, there are millet and salt cellars.”33 “Annotations to Wei Capital Rhapsody” says, “Ice Well Terrace has three Ice Chambers and these chambers are all connected with the Cool Hall (凉殿) via elevated passways (阁道).” (III) Palaces From the ninth year (204) of the Jian’an period when Cao Cao took Ye, the city had gone through several periods of renovation and revamping. It had become quite a large city in the 17th year (212). The following year Emperor Xiandi titled Cao Cao Duke of Wei, and the title was changed to King of Wei in the 21st year (216). The palace complex became more sumptuous and more magnificent following the owner’s growing status. In terms of palace layout, most regulations were specified by Cao Cao “to satisfy all his needs.” After more than a decade’s effort, Ye city had taken on a different look from Chang’an or Luoyang. This city consisted of Royal Garden, Outer Court, and Inner Court from west to east, each building complex featuring bilateral symmetry and south–​north inter-​coordination. All palaces, halls, terraces,

70  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system pavilions, towers, and gardens contrasted with each other; palace complex, Bronze Bird Garden, and Three Terraces each had their own function, but still form an organic whole. As for the neatly scattered buildings, all names and inscriptions were made by famous calligrapher Liang Gu (梁鹄). In the “Annals of Wudi Emperor” of Records of the Three Kingdoms, Pei Songzhi quoted Wei Heng’s (卫恒) Preface to Four Scripts of Calligraphy (四体书势序) in his annotation, “Liang Gu, styled Menghuang (孟黄), was a native of Anding. He composed all inscriptions on Wei’s palaces and halls.” Liang Gu learned calligraphy from Handan Chun (邯郸淳). Review of Literature (文章叙录) says, “Liang Gu said [Handan Chun] commanded the knack of Wang Cizhong’s (王次仲) calligraphy. Even so, Liang’s brushwork has fully unleashed the might of his calligraphy.”34 Cao Cao liked Liang Gu’s calligraphy very much and often hung his works in his military tent or on the wall for appreciation. Southern Liang Dynasty scholar Yuan Ang (袁昂) said in Critique of Ancient and Present Calligraphy (古今书评), “Liang Gu’s calligraphy, like the Emperor Wudi who forgets to sleep, looks wild and makes the audience stupefied.” The extant work Memorial of Title Conferment (上尊号奏) is said to be created by Liang Gu (梁鹄) [or perhaps Zhong Yao (钟繇)]. At least, it is safe to say that the work belongs to the Cao-​Wei dynasty because character wei (魏) is the same as that in title King Wu of Wei (魏武王) at the Tomb. By blending nature, culture, and art, it became an ideal place for Cao Cao’s political bloc to live, govern state affairs, compose poems and essays, and see sights. In the last 15 or 16 years of his life, Cao Cao spent most of his time staying there except for expeditions or patrols. His son Cao Zhi gave us a vivid picture of the magnificent palaces and majestic halls in his “Vernal Excursion Rhapsody (节游赋),” O watch the palace of Wei! It is an ideal residence for the Lord. Before the palace complex stand Three Terraces. Each terrace thrusts upwards into the azure sky. There are interconnected tall walkways, which allow visitors to go straight or tour around pavilions till the northwest gatetower. Through a window in the corridor, I see clouds rolling and unfolding. Look into the distance: Myriad peaks and ridges are scrawling on the Mt Hua. The limpid channels are running with water of the Zhang and Fu Rivers. As rows of pompous edifices come in sight, I irresistibly delve into a wild reverie. This is indeed the residence of King of Wei, not that for us. In this second spring month,

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  71 Nature shows a tapestry of many different kinds of flowers. Grasses and trees grow in profusion; especially, verdant leaves cling tight to the crimson stalks. Bamboo groves wear their green livery while rare fruit-​trees begin to bud. A warm south wind comes, migrant birds singing joyfully. As the water ripples, aquatic insects start chirping their songs. At this time of year, I feel glad and jubilant because the seasons alternate properly and everything comes forth. In this case, I ride in a carriage covered with a white canopy and encourage the horses to run swiftly. Besides, I invite some relatives and friends to chant the “Stream” chapter of The Book of Poetry. We have an outing altogether. When we enter the North Garden, we let our horses gallop with great speed, in hopes of ascending to heaven and forgetting all the din of city tumult. The Xuanwu Pond shimmering and sparkling, we dismount and get aboard. On the skiffs, we pour luscious wines into a goblet and take turns to empty this cup. Wind and string instruments make a steep, high-​pitched melody, which is reverberated over water. Let us unwind and relax, enjoying this day happily. Alas, Xihe lashes his horse so hard and good time flies so fast! At present, the sunset is casting a golden hue over the horizon and sky. Life is ephemeral indeed. It is as short as thin frost in spring. Our fame may have a niche in history, but we can never know what life lies ahead. Unleash our passion wildly and wander arbitrarily—​ this is not the decent way of life for a prince. So, we cancel the banquet and each one returns to his ordinary residence.35 1.  Palace Gates Front Gate: This is the front gate of the Hall of Literary Prosperity. Cao Zhi wrote in “Pagoda Tree Rhapsody (槐赋),” O the sumptuous Hall of Literary Prosperity! The palace road leads to the front gate, flanked by great pagoda trees.

72  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system Changhe Gate (阊阖门): Eastern Han-​epoch scholar Zhang Heng (张衡) said in “Western Capital Rhapsody (西京赋),” They replicated the Purple Tenuity in the Everlasting Palace, placed lofty watchtowers to mark the Celestial gateway.36 Wu Xuezong (吴薛综) noted, “In the sky, there is the Purple Tenuity Palace (紫微宫), a symbol of royalty. The gate of this palace is called Celestial (阊阖) and a tower is built at the gate to embody loftiness.” Tang-​dynasty scholar Lü Xiang (吕向) said, “The character yao (峣) refers to high or lofty and changhe means the Celestial Gate. … High towers are erected as Celestial Gates on earth.”37 Cao Zhi wrote in a rhapsody, As the Celestial Gate opens, the Heavenly Street becomes accessible. His “The Immortals (仙人篇)” says, The Celestial Gate stands majestically tall, its Double Towers are higher than 10,000 zhang.38 Changhe Gate (阊阖), before Front Gate, stood due north of the official path of Zhang Gate of Ye. Outside Changhe Gate, there were two towers built on either side of Dongxi Boulevard. This is the first gate to Outer Court. It seems that the gate must have had gatetowers. When discovering a pattern of Two-​ Tiered Building (重楼) Flanked by Two Gatetowers (双阙) on the Engraved Stone [Metropolitan Museum, New York], Liang Sicheng (梁思成) imitated the patterns and incorporated them into his A Pictorial History of Chinese Architecture.39 The patterns seem akin to their counterparts on Changhe Gate of the Palace of Ye and can be crosschecked with historical texts. Zhiche Gate: This was sandwiched between Front Gate and Changhe Gate. The “Annotations to Wei Capital Rhapsody” says, “This gate stands before Front Gate and north of Zhiche Gate.” When officials and officers went to court to discuss affairs, they entered the east gate of the palace through its east and west sides and dismounted in front of Zhiche Gate. They went north through both sides of Zhiche Gate, entering Front Gate up to the Hall of Literary Prosperity. East Shangdong Gate (东上东门) and West Shangdong Gate (西上东门): “Annotations to Wei Capital Rhapsody” says, “Zhiche Gate stands due south of Duan Gate, flanked by East Shangdong Gate and West Shangdong Gate.” Jia Yi said in a memorial, “On a well-​chosen day, all the emperor’s sons should be enfeoffed outside Shangdong Gate of Luoyang (雒阳).” Li You (李尤) wrote an inscription, The Sun rises in the east; at the Yin (寅) position—​northeast,

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  73 a warm zephyr arouses everything, which suggests early spring creeps in. Cao-​ Wei built East Shangdong Gate and West Shangdong Gate in Ye according to the tradition of the Han and enfeoffed his sons there. No historical text gives clear information about the two gates. According to the layout of the Palace City, they should be the East Shangdong Gate east of the Dongxi Street in front of Zhiche Gate and the West Shangdong Gate west of the street. Ye palace had a West Garden that was known as a major venue for royal activities. Go west from West Garden and you would get into Outer Court Palace Complex, and West Shangdong Gate would inevitably be on that route. To attend the morning exercise, all officials entered through East Shangdong Gate, dismounted in front of Zhiche Gate while officers went in through West Shangdong Gate, dismounted in front of Zhiche Gate. Finally, both walked into the court of the Hall of Literary Prosperity. Changchun Gate and Yanqiu Gate: Zuo Si wrote in “Wei Capital Rhapsody,” There is the North Watchtower, high and imposing, followed by the Principal Gate (逌遵) on the south. They thrust upward like twin boulders, and through them chariots are driven two abreast. On the west yawns Perpetual Autumn (延秋); on the east gapes Changchun (Eternal Spring 长春). Here the emperor has audience with his lords, “observes nourishment,” and feeds his guests.40 Pei Songzhi quoted from Annotated Records of Emperor Xiandi (献帝起居注) in his annotations to the “Annals of Emperor Wudi” of Records of the Three Kingdoms, Emperor Xiandi of the Han assigned Chamberlain for the National Treasury (大司农)41 Wang Yi (王邑), titled Marquis of Anyangting (安阳亭) and Chamberlain for the Imperial Clan (宗正)42 Liu Ai (刘艾) … to welcome two new concubines from Wei. On the kuihai (癸亥) day of the second month, these concubines each were granted a seal and ribbon. On the jiazi (甲子) day, some officials and eunuchs visited Yanqiu Gate of the Palace to invite the concubines into their carriage. In the Jiazi year, he visited Yanqiu Gate of the Palace of Wei and greeted a noble man to ride in the carriage. Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period claims that the two gates were built east and west of the front gate. Changchun Gate faced east, leading to Guangdemen Street, and Yanqiu Gate faced west, leading to Jiumen Street. All the above gates are palace gates of the Outer (Grand) Court.

74  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system Tingzheng Gate (听政门): Liu Chengzhi (刘澄之) said in Record of Past and Present Landscapes in Yongchu Era of the Song (宋永初山川古今记), “In front of the Hall of Hearing Political Decisions of Emperor Wudi of Wei, there was a gate of the same name.”43 The “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye (邺都宫室志)” chapter of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period says, “Tingzheng Gate lies due north of Shengxian Gate and due south of the Hall of Hearing Political Decisions.” Dengxian Gate (登贤门). It is also known as Shengxian Gate (升贤门). Cao Pi wrote in “Pagoda Tree Rhapsody,” “Wang Can is on duty outside the Small Pavilion at Dengxian Gate. Also, a pagoda tree grows out there.”44 Yang Chen (杨晨) wrote in volume 8 in Essentials of Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国会要), “Tingzheng Gate was located outside the Hall of Hearing Political Decisions. When anyone walked near the Inner Court, he will definitely see Wang Can on duty at Dengxian Gate.” In the 11th month of the 18th year of the Jian’an period, Wei set up Imperial Secretaries, Palace Attendants, and Six Ministers. In those days, Wang Can, Du Xi (杜袭), Wei Ji (卫觊), and He Qia (和洽) acted as counselors.45 As Xu Jian (徐坚) quoted from Record of the Official Ranks and Positions of Qi and Previous Dynasties (齐职仪) in volume 12 of Writings for Elementary Instruction, “In the Wei dynasty, Counselor took charge of various greeting rituals and ceremonies. When the King went out, Associate Counselor should escort His Majesty and Counselor should carry the imperial seal and sit to the right of the Lord.” Wang Can served as Counselor and sat to the right of Cao Cao when he went out. Moreover, Wang Can and Wei Ji (卫觊) not only worked out rules and regulations together, but also initiated rituals for the court-​holding ceremony.” The “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye” chapter of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period says Shengxian Gate was in front of Tingzheng Gate. Shunde Gate (顺德门): This gate was located to the front right of Shengxian Gate and faced south.46 Chongli Gate (崇礼门): This gate was located to the front left of Shengxian Gate and faced south.47 Xuanming Gate (宣明门): This was located south of Shengxian Gate and north of Xianyang Gate.48 Zuo Si wrote in “Wei Capital Rhapsody,” “Where the Hall of Hearing Political Decisions serves as the audience chamber. … In front there are [Halls of] Manifest Brilliance (宣明), Resplendent Yang (显阳), Compliant Virtue (顺德), and Exalted Ritual (崇礼). Through double doorways opening one upon another march the officials graceful and composed. Rare trees grow lush and luxuriant.”49 Xianyang Gate (显阳门): This was located in front of Xuanming Gate and led south to Sima Gate.50 Sima Gate (司马门): The “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye” of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period says, “This gate is located east of Duan Gate and south of the Hall of Hearing Political Decisions.” Actually, the so-​called Duan Gate should be Changhe Gate. Sima Gate should be located

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  75 east of Changhe Gate and on the same line as Tingzheng Gate, Dengxian Gate, Xuanming Gate, and Xianyang Gate. It is the front gate of Inner Court. The scholars quoted from Examples of Refined Usage (尔雅)51 in the “Gates (门)” chapter in volume 63 of Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters, “The Front gate is also called Ying gate.” Jia Yi said in New Book of Jia Yi (贾谊新书)52, “The gate of the Palace of Heaven’s Son is referred to as Sima Gate.” According to annotations to Records of the Grand Historian, “Sima Gate indicates the location of Imperial Guards within the imperial palace. A capital has four Sima Gates, each guarding a direction. The word Sima (司马) here refers to military affairs.” This gate holds the key to the imperial palace and thus is under stringent control. The “Biography of Cao Zhi the King Si of Chen” in volume 19 of Records of the Three Kingdoms says, “Once a time, Cao Zhi rode in a carriage and opened Sima Gate to go out. His father Cao Cao felt greatly furious and sentenced the Director of the Gate Traffic Control Office (公车令)53 to death. From then on, stricter bans were enacted against princes and Cao Zhi fell into increasing disfavor.” As Pei Songzhi quoted from Tales of Emperor Wudi of Wei (魏武故事) in his annotation, “I loathed my son Cao Zhi, titled Marquis of Linzi, since he went out privately and had the effrontery to open Sima Gate to reach Golden Gate without prior authorization.” In the Han dynasty, the crown prince dwelt in the East Palace and was not to cross the path in front of the front hall when he wanted to see the incumbent emperor. The Book of Han claims, “When Emperor Yuandi used to be the crown prince, he always behaved cautiously. At first, he resided in the Osmanthus Palace (桂宫). Once when the emperor summoned him hastily, he left Longlou Gate (龙楼门) and dared not to cross the path.”54 Historical sources tell us that Sima Gate was of paramount importance and thus remained closed in normal times except when something important or significant happened. No one was authorized to open the gate except the King of Wei himself. When going to court, officials and officers usually entered/​left the court through the side gates on both sides. The “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye” chapter of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period says, “Guangyang Gate was located due south of Sima Gate.” However, this record is inconsistent with the archaeological discovery. Specifically, the site of Guangyang Gate was about 300 m away from the southeastern corner of the city, but Sima Gate was located further west. The royal south path was sandwiched between Guangyang Gate and Zhongyang Gate. Golden Gate (金门): Cao Zhi dwelt in Ye palace and rode in a carriage along the path. He directly moved towards Golden Gate when Sima Gate was opened. Golden Gate usually refers to West Gate, also known as White Gate or Autumn Gate. Cao Zhi left the southward Sima Gate and moved west along the East and West Streets until he reached the Golden Gate. East Side Gate (东掖门): This gate was located east of Sima Gate. “According to the regulation of the Han dynasty, all the gates from Inner Court to the Imperial Palace (禁省) are hall gates (殿门) and all the gates on the outside boulevards are side gates.” Ying Shao (应劭) said, “The character

76  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system ye here means the gate lies east of Sima Gate.”55 East Side Gate, as its name suggests, is the gateway from the inner court to North and South Boulevards in the east of the city. Likewise, there is another side gate west of Sima Gate, which connects Inner Court and Guangdemen Street. Leave the West Side Gate and cross Guangdemen Street, and you will enter Changchun Gate outside the Outer Court palaces. When Yan Cai (严才) revolted, he led his men to attack the side gate. The “Biography of Wang Xiu (王修传)” in volume 11 of Records of the Three Kingdoms says, Later Yan Cai rose up against the state, leading his dozens of men to conquer the side gate. Wang Xiu heard the news and ordered a carriage futilely. As the carriage did not come, he moved the officials to the palace gate. When Emperor Taizu saw it from Bronze Bird Terrace, he said, “The comer must be Wang Shuzhi (Xiu).” Counselor-​in-​Chief Zhong Yao told Xiu, “Previously, each time an unexpected event happened, all the nine ministers simply stayed in their mansions.” Wang Xiu said, “Since we receive the Lord’s salary, how can we cringe and cower at such a critical moment? Previously, many officials stayed home to see how things develop and take actions accordingly. That’s what we should do on no account. Instead, we should risk our own lives to save the Lord or Empire.” The above gates are all gates of Inner Court’s halls. Besides these, there is the Gate of Zhaosu. The Book of Wei says, “At first, Emperor Wendi (Cao Pi) lived in the East Palace (东宫). He recruited various scholars to preach Confucian teachings in the Gate of Zhaosu (朝肃门). They kept on speaking untiredly.”56 It is currently not known exactly where the gate was located. 2.  Inner Court, Outer Court, and Harem Qing-​ dynasty scholar Liu Xianting (刘献廷) wrote in volume 1 of Miscellaneous Writings of Guangyang (广阳杂记), Wang Wenke said, In the Zhou dynasty, there were three courts: First, outside the Ku Gate (库门) lay Outer Court where state affairs were consulted. Second, outside Lu Gate (路门) lay Governance Court (治朝) where daily affairs were discussed. Third, inside Lu Gate lay Inner Court (内朝) or Yan Court (燕朝). Essence of Jade (玉藻) says, “When the sun rises, the Lord enters the Governance Court; when he retreats, the Lord listens to political decisions in the Dew Court. Perhaps this is because the pecking order should be clarified to hold a presentation in the Governance Court and the situations about areas near and far should be learned by listening to political decisions in the Dew Court (also named Outer Court).”

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  77 The palace layout of Ye of Cao-​Wei followed in the previous dynasty’s footsteps of dividing the palace into Outer Court, Governance Court, and Inner Court. I.  HALLS OF THE OUTER COURT

Hall of Literary Hall: Lying north of Front Gate (端门), this hall is the venue where Cao Cao received guests, met his officials, or held grand ceremonies. The “Heavenly Officials (天官)” chapter of Rites of Zhou mentions “literary prosperity or florescence (文昌).” With this in mind, Cao Cao named the grand hall of Outer Court after this allusion. In the 12th month of the 19th year (214) of the Jian’an period, “Heaven’s Son ordered Duke Cao to assign a brigade of cavalrymen as guards for his parade and set a bell stand (钟虡) in the palace.”57 Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period introduces the inscription on the hall, “In the fourth year or the 21st year (AD 219) of the Jian’an period, which was known as a bingshen (丙申) year according to the Heavenly Branches and Earthly Roots, the Azure Dragon (苍龙) celestial group arrived at the Great Fire position (due south). On the bingyin (丙寅) day of the fifth month, both Ruibin Bell (蕤宾钟) and Wuyi Bell (无射钟) were made.” Zuo Si wrote in “Wei Capital Rhapsody,” They fashioned the vast Hall of Literary Prosperity, a structure raised on the grandest scale. As imposing as a lofty mountain, it rears itself upward steep and tall, hovering like a black cloud, or like an outstretched rainbow hanging on high. The world’s rarest materials are intricately imbricated in sundry sizes, with purlins and rafters repeatedly joined, bearing blocks and brackets fitted layer upon layer. Vermilion beams, like arching rainbows, stretch out one after another; Scarlet girders, like a spreading forest, fork this way and that. On ornate ceilings in serried array hang lotus stalks, their splendid double blossoms opening upside down. Evenly placed are dragon-​heads through which rain water gushes; at times they seem to resemble flowing pools. Numerous columns are mightily arrayed, their luster reflected in the central eaves. The finials are painted jet black; stairs and balustrades rise sheer and steep. In the long courtyard, smooth as a whetstone; bells and bell-​stands are compactly displayed. Though there is wind, not even the finest dust blows in; though it rains, not even the smallest drop enters.58

78  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system The Outer Court Palace was actually a courtyard featured with the Hall of Literary Prosperity. This hall was grand-​looking and enclosed by a long corridor. King Wu’s spring festival gala took place in the hall. Cao Zhi wrote in “Lantern Festival Poem (元会诗),” What a hilarious day today! A new year starts now. We arrange a glorious party at this stately hall. Everyone wears a bright uniform of black, white, green and yellow. Succulent dishes are prepared and their tantalizing fragrance wafts out of the plates and saucers. Now we look below at the sumptuous pavilion and then we look upward at the flamboyant beams. May this happy moment last as long as one millennium! Let’s make merry to our heart’s content. I just wish such gaiety will never end. The royalty’s dignity will live on for aeons. Cao Cao’s formal Spring festival gala still followed the ceremony of the Han dynasty, with 100 decorative lanterns dotting the Hall of Literary Prosperity. The “Records of Ritual (礼志)” chapter in volume 21 of The Book of Jin says, “When Emperor Wudi of Wei established the capital in Ye, he arranged the Spring Festival gala at the Hall of Literary Prosperity in line with the customs of the Han dynasty; besides, 100 lamps were set up.” Cao Cao once met guests at the hall. Zuo Si wrote in “Wei Capital Rhapsody,” Barbarian chiefs, topknots on their heads, tribal leaders, metal rings in their ears, dressed in their outlander’s garb, straightening their sleeves, paid homage at court. They were feasted in the Hall of Literary Prosperity where hanging high were instruments placed well in advance.59 Hall of Literary Prosperity is the highest building of the Ye palace. Cao Zhi once toured the twin gatetowers outside Changhe Gate, marveling at the impressive majesty of the hall. He wrote in “A Poem Presented to Xu Gan (赠徐干诗),” “Midnight let me travel, and travel between palaces’ twin towers; the Hall of Literary Prosperity, cloud-​penetrating, magnificent and the Wind-​ Facing Tower, reaching up to the sky.” Behind the Hall of Literary Prosperity stood Garden Pond. The “Record of Five Elements (五行志)” in volume 32 of Book of Song says, “In the 23rd year of Emperor Xiandi of the Han, dejected water birds gathered at the

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  79 Pond behind the Hall of Literary Prosperity and next year King Wu of Wei passed away.” Before the Hall of Literary Prosperity were planted pagoda trees. Cao Zhi wrote in “Pagoda Tree Rhapsody (槐赋),” In the Hall of Literary Prosperity, pagoda trees grow lushly. I roamed under the tree several times and thus I know its great beauty. This is why I make this rhapsody. Also, a pagoda tree grows at Small Pavilion at Dengxian Gate where Wang Can is on duty. So, I request him to write a rhapsody of the same name: In the grand Ye city, there are many pagoda trees of excellent quality. Such trees takes root in the fertile soil and bask in the sun and moon. They may encompass a long corridor; two rows of such trees can flank a gate. They can support the lofty Hall of Literary Prosperity and stand opposite the flying eaves of the pavilions. These trees have branches and boughs that are intertwined here and scattered there, their verdant leaves offering a massive shadow. As they soar upward into the sky, even the clouds could be covered; as they stand upright on earth, even trunks look upright and robust. When spring gives way to summer, wild geese roam below the trees and southern wind blows. Isn’t it comfortable to take a rest under the trees? When summer reaches its apogee, isn’t it excellent to take shelter from heat under the trees?60 Cao Zhi also wrote a rhapsody of the same name, All rare trees and flowers are planted to decorate the hall; pagoda trees are given special emphasis by the lord. Numerous pagoda trees stand upright around the Hall of Literary Prosperity and flank the Front Gate majestically. Some pagoda trees poke their branches and boughs upward at the flying eaves, which remind us of their roots deep in the earth. These trees form a huge canopy, which represents the sagacious king’s ubiquitous grace. In late spring, pagoda trees start sprouting; and in summer-​time, they grow even more lushly and provide enormous shade.

80  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system Moreover, they demonstrate a bright and brilliant sheen, thus heightening the fresh ambience. Go into the Hall of Literary Prosperity, past Front Gate and go south till the twin gatetowers outside Changhe Gate, with the boulevard being flanked by great pagoda trees. Fan Qin (繁钦) wrote in “Pagoda Tree Poem (槐树诗),” Fine trees sprout verdant foliage beside the twin towers. Banners waft in the wind, showing a variety of soft colors.61 When pagoda trees were planted in the court, Cao Pi, Cao Zhi, Wang can, and Fan Qin all wrote rhapsodies in praise of them because there was such worship back then. Collected Records of the Spring and Autumn Period (春秋说), “Pagoda tree is a spirit of Celestial Void Star (虚星).” Annals’ Inclusion of the Primary Mandate (春秋·元命苞),62 “Plant a pagoda tree and it will help you handle a lawsuit impartially. This is because the tree has incredible power in judging cases and may help you find the truth.”63 This custom of planting pagoda trees in the imperial court lasted into the Ming and Qing dynasties. Even today the imperial path in front of Wu Gate reaching from Duan Gate to Tian’an Gate remains flanked by two pagoda trees. However, they are different species from those in the Ye palace. In the harem and the back garden, there are many pagoda trees as well. Apart from pagoda trees, the palace had various other rare, beautiful species. Bell Tower (钟楼) and Drum Tower (鼓楼): The two towers flanked the front façade of the Hall of Literary Prosperity.64 Ruibin Bell and Wuyi Bell. The two bells must have been located in the hall. Ruibin Bell was made on the 17th day of the ninth month of the 21st year of the Jian’an period and weighed 2,800 jun (钧)65 and 12 jin.66 Wang Can composed “Inscription on Ruibin Bell (蕤宾钟铭),” Duke of Wei saved the empire and thus achieved an unmatched feat. He pacified the world and established his state. He responded to the needs of the common people and brought about good omens. Now an imperial edict stipulates that this bell should be made. By adding/​subtracting one third, three lüs (rhythms 律) are obtained; by bisecting, six rhythms are gained. The scale of this bell satisfies the standard and the bell diffuses an excellent mien. The bell sounds harmonious and helps the people keep amiable. The note Ruibin (蕤宾)67 is carved to pray for everlasting bliss.68

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  81 Wuyi Bell was made on the same day as Ruibin Bell and weighed 3,500 jun and 8 jin.69 Wang Can also made an inscription for it, Duke of Wei assisted the lord in governing state affairs and scored remarkable feats. He rectified the upper and lower classes and his merit illumined everywhere. Good omens appeared and signified peace in the eyes of the people. This bell is made upon an imperial edict of the emperor. By adding or subtracting one third,70 three lüs (rhythms 律) are obtained; by bisecting, six rhythms are gained. The scale of this bell satisfies the standard and the bell diffuses an excellent mien. The bell sounds well-​balanced and helps boosts amiability. Thus, it is named Wuyi to open up a new stage.71

II.  HALLS OF THE INNER COURT

Inner Court was located east of Outer Court. So, “Wei Capital Rhpasody” describes first Outer Court and then described Inner Court, On the left is the Middle Court (中朝) in reddish splendor, where the Hall of Hearing Political Decisions serves as the audience chamber. It is neither plain nor embellished, eschews excess and eschews extremes. The wood has no carving or engraving; the walls have no pongee or brocade. These are things molded by profound influence, and sanctioned in the customs of the states. In front there are [Halls of] Manifest Brilliance, Resplendent Yang, Compliant Virtue, and Exalted Ritual. Through double doorways opening one upon another march the officials graceful and composed. Rare trees grow lush and luxuriant; unusual plants burgeon rank and thick. The gentle breezes seem perfumed; the sweet dew flows like fragrant wine. … To the rear there are

82  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system Pepper Rooms (椒房), Hall of Chirping Crane (鸣鹤堂), and Agate Chamber (文石室), Yong Lane (永巷), and Hu Lane (壸术, aka 壸巷).72 Li Shan (李善) annotated that “The “Middle Court” refers to Inner Court (内朝). According to the Han official system, senior officials such as Commander-​in-​Chief (大司马),73 Palace Attendant (侍中),74 Cavalier Attendant-​in-​Ordinary (散骑常侍), and Gentleman Cavalier Attendant (散骑侍郎)75 should go to the Middle Court while Counselor-​in-​Chief and those minor officials below the salary of 600 shi should go to the Outer Court. Inner Court was a courtyard mainly including the Hall of Hearing Political Decisions. In front of this hall, there were seven gates from north to south: Tingzheng Gate, Dengxian Gate (Shengxian Gate), Shunde Gate, Chongli Gate, Xuanming Gate, Xianyang Gate, and Sima Gate. Hall of Hearing Political Decisions stood east of the Hall of Literary Prosperity. The hall is also referred to as Meeting Court (视朝) or Governance Court (治朝). Cao Pi said in “Hunting Rhapsody (校猎赋),” Get in the Dew Court to listen to political decisions and manipulate various directors.76 The Hall of Hearing Political Decisions is also known as Middle Hall or Middle Court. This court is home to great pagoda trees and rare flowers and trees. Cao Pi wrote in “Pagoda Tree Rhapsody,” “Also, a pagoda tree grows out Small Pavilion at Dengxian Gate where Wang Can is on duty. So, I request him to write a rhapsody of the same name.” Wang Can wrote in his rhapsody of the same name, A splendid pagoda tree grows along the road from the front gate to the main hall. Only this tree has a ravishing presence by nature. It comes to this royal hall beyond the fields and adds a great deal of brilliance to the courtyard. This tree looks beautiful and refined, its branches stretching out. As a whole, it gives out a display of bright colors. Its thick foliage provides a large shade. In mid-​summer, it comes in profusion. It seems stand nearby the hall, but actually has taken root deep in the earth. Various birds want to perch on the tree and various people want to take shelter under the tree.77 Cao Zhi said in “Treatise on the Virtue of Wei (魏德论),” “During the reign of Emperor Wudi, white sparrows gathered in the pagoda trees.” Also, he praised pagoda trees in the court,

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  83 So graceful are the pagoda trees! They embodies the essence of grain. Their length can fill a box and different trunks have the same spikes. These trees previously grew in the Zhou dynasty and now run riot in the Wei court. These trees should be offered in the Ancestral Temple to care for our ancestors.78 Cao Pi wrote in “Rhapsody on Lament for My Late Brother (悼夭赋),” As I wander in the grand mansion, I feel at a loss and hesitate for a while. The outhouse lily in the courtyard comes into my sight.79 He also wrote “Midie Rhapsody (迷迭赋),” Sitting in the central hall, I gaze at the courtyard, where fragrant trees grow in profusion. Midie (Rosemary 迷迭) is an aromatic herb of the Western Regions. Extended Records of Remarkable Things (广志)80 says, “Rosemary is a herb of the Western Regions.”81 Government Door (听政闼), Door of Accepting Advice (纳言闼), Imperial Secretariat (尚书台),82 Office for Sage Solicitation (升贤署), Tribunal of Receptions (谒者台阁),83 Pavilion for Tally (符节台阁), Pavilion of Imperial Scribes (御史台阁),84 Mansions for Various Sections under the Counselor-​ in-​Chief (丞相诸曹), and King Wu Cao Cao’s Inner Court Governance Authority were all located at the sides of the path in front of the Hall of Hearing Political Decisions. “Wei Capital Rhapsody” says, The forbidden tower and inner palace, with interlocking gates and parallel passages, are places where officials pursue their duties, where statutes and laws are stored. Numerous attendant officials, their Gold Cicada Caps all equally lustrous, at the crack of dawn stand by the emperor’s curtains, and in elegant words report to the throne. Next come the men in Rear-​Stay Caps, upholders of the law waiting within. Officers of tallies and credentials, internuncios, take charge of the seals, tend to the officials. The royal steward has his officials; the royal apothecary has his officers.

84  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system Meat and wine thus fit the season; disorders of skin and veins are cured.85 The annotation claims, Within Shengxian Gate, there is Pavilion of Listening to Political Decisions. Outside this pavilion stands Pavilion of Accepting Advance and Dais of Director. Get into Xuanming Gate (宣明门) and you will see Office for Sage Solicitation east of Shengxian Gate; walk along Xianyang Gate and you will see Tribunal of Receptions southernmost of Xuanming Gate. There are Tribunal of Receptions, Pavilion for Tally, and Pavilion of Imperial Scribes scattered from west to east. East of Pavilion for Tally lies Mansions for Various Sections under the Counselor-​in-​Chief.86 III. HAREM

Hall of Hearing Political Decisions was actually the Harem or Seraglio (后宫). It was also known as Back Court (后庭). Cao Pi wrote in “Hunting Rhapsody,” We wander at ease in the Back Court and take a rest at Orchid House (兰房).87 The harem had many exquisite, magnificent buildings. Just look at Cao Zhi’s memorial, “I visited the harem upon invitation of the imperial messenger. At first, I played in the Hall of Circling Clouds (云盘); then I toured around Hall of Sparse Gardens (疏圃); at last, I visited Palace of Nine Efflorescences (九华).88 Oh, how ethereal they are! So natural, so splendid. This is indeed a residential area for the royalty. Only Fairy Garden (阆风) on Mount Kunlun or the Celestial Residence of God of Literary Prosperity can be compared with this harem.”89 Yunpan, Shupu, and Jiuhuagong are all building names of the harem. “Wei Capital Rhapsody” says, To the rear there are Pepper Rooms, Hall of Chirping Crane, and Agate Chamber, Yong Lane, and Hu Lane. Catalpa and Magnolia Neighborhoods, Duty houses and dormitories class Jia and Yi. Their houses with doors south and west, they finished in less than a day. For paintings resplendently brilliant, there is the Warm Chamber specially built. Here are representations of the cosmos, and portraits of ancient worthies and sages. They are drawn with hundreds of lucky signs, embellished with elegant songs of praise.90

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  85 Actually, behind the Hall of Hearing Political Decisions stand the Pepper Rooms, Hall of Chirping Crane, and Agate Chamber, Yong Lanes, and Hu Lanes. Li Shan notated, “There was a road spreading westward between the Inner Court and the Harem. This road is called Yong Lane or Hu Lane. There is also Warm Chamber (温室) located between Hall of Chirping Crane and Hall of Hearing Political Decisions, with Catalpa Neighborhoods (楸梓坊) to the east and Magnolia Neighborhoods (木兰坊) to the west. In the Warm Chamber, there are some portraits. Yong Lane is a sobriquet of Side Palace (掖庭). The characters jia (甲) and yi (乙) indicate the classes of the quarters.” Tang-​dynasty poet Lu Guimeng (陆龟蒙) wrote “Poem of Ye Palace (邺宫词),” Throughout his lifetime, Emperor Wudi did not like perfume. Yet the Wei palace was later ornamented with maple resin and patchouli. It is obvious that His edict was not followed posthumously. The embroidered perfume bags still carry a lingering fragrance. Wu Yu (吴聿) stated in Poetic Notes from a Forest-​ Watching Hermit (观林诗话), “Some believed that the plant patchouli (蕙) cannot be burnt. However, we can find a record in Extended Record of Remarkable Things, ‘Patchouli features green leaves and purple flowers. Emperor Wudi of Wei mistakenly considered it as a fragrant plant and burnt it.’ ”91 Examining these sources provides a rough idea of the harem layout—​behind the Hall of Hearing Political Decisions lies Dongxi Road, namely Yong Lane. The Harem lies behind this lane. There are the Hall of Hearing Political Decisions, Warm Chamber, Hall of Chirping Crane, and Agate Chamber distributed on the Inner Court–​Harem central axis from south to north, flanked by Catalpa Quarter and Magnolia Quarter. On the north tip of the harem was located the Royal Garden (苑圃). Also, there is a Hall of Resplendent Yang. It was burnt down in the final years of the Western Jin epoch. Also, Orchid House (兰房) should be a building of the Harem. Cao Zhi said in “Poem to a Parting Friend (离友诗),” Tour around the Wei capital and take a rest in the Orchid House.92 Historical records also give us accounts of famous objects of the Imperial Palace of Wei. Mirrors of the Imperial Palace of Wei (魏宫中镜): Emperor Wudi of Wei claimed in “Memorial of Miscellaneous Objects Granted to (上杂器物疏)” that there is an iron mirror inlaid with gold among the 30 items. This mirror is 1.2 chi long and its diameter is 9 chi. According to the same historical source, “The palace of Wei has several mirrors: One mirror is inlaid with pure silver. Another four mirrors are made of pure silver and used for fifth rank concubines (贵人) or princesses.”93 In the ancient imperial palace, a mirror

86  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system was not just an everyday article, but also an artwork, a symbol of fairness and impartiality. Throughout the ages, it has been well-​received and loved by all emperors. Bottom of Aristocratic Hat (弁柢) of Emperor Wudi of Wei: Discussions on Wei Terrace (魏台访议) says, “Five-​colored jade (五采玉), as its name tells, refers to a jade of five colors. The bottom (邸) means ornamenting the bottom edge of the hat with elephant bones. For example, all his hats have hairpins (笄) but have no tassels (缨). Cao Bao (曹褒) said, ‘the Hat of Heaven’s Son should be ornamented with white jade.’ ”94 Jiuhua Fan (九华扇): Cao Pi wrote “Rhapsody of Jiuhua Fan (九华扇赋).” This fan may be a famous decoration in the Palace of Nine Efflorescences of Ye city. Flying Meteor Sabre (飞景宝剑): Cao Pi cast this precious sword in Ye. He wrote in On Classic (典论), On the renwu (壬午) day of the second month of the 24th year, Cao Pi, the crown prince of Wei, made a sword called Baipi (百辟), the name of which suggests this weapon can dispel all evil. This precious sword is four chi and two cun long. It is cast through several steps: First, tempered mould with the water of the Clear Zhang River. Second, ground it with a grey-​looking whetstone. Third, embellished it with specially textured jade. Fourth, ornamented it with rhino-​horn. In the end, the sword could sparkle brightly like a shooting star and thus is called Flying Meteor (飞景).95 Seven-​Scent Chariot (七香车): Emperor Wudi of Wei presented Yang Biao (杨彪) such a carriage. Cao Cao said in “A Letter to Yang Biao (与杨彪书),” “This time I presented to you two seven-​scent curtain-​covered carriages with windows on all four sides and colored wheels.” Berries were planted in the Royal Garden behind the harem. The “Wild Grapes (燕薁)” chapter in volume 87 of Assemblages of the Arts and Letters, “ ‘Wei Capital Rhapsody’ says, ‘The Wei Capital is home to cornelian cherries, plums, papermulberries, bush cherries, pomegranates, and wild grape berries. These fruits are altogether referred to as berries.’ ” 3.  Crown Prince palace (太子宫) Palace for the Crown Prince was located in the east of the Imperial Palace. More accurately, it stood east of the palaces of Inner Court. It is the place where crown prince Cao Pi lived, handled affairs or entertained guests. The main buildings of this palace include East Pavilion (东阁). East Pavilion: It seems that this pavilion was located east of the Hall of Hearing Political Decisions. Cao Pi, Cao Zhi, and other scholars of the Jian’an period often merrily composed poems and rhapsodies here. Cao Pi said, “When I was the crown prince, I often wrote poems at North Garden and the Lecture Hall of East Pavilion and asked Wang Can, Liu Zhen, Ruan

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  87 Yu, and Ying Chang among others to write as well.”96 Cao Pi himself wrote in “Poem of East Pavilion (东阁诗),” The lofty mountain ejects five-​colored clouds. He also wrote “Summer Poem (夏日诗),” It feels quite mild at this place. That is why I take shelter here from the summer heat. I sit north in the pavilion and invite guests for entertainment. Square dishes are sent in as various fruits are on offer. We make moves across the board, playing chess hilariously. One plays prudently and defeats his opponent who looks stupid. In this way, we reach our heart’s content. From dawn to dusk, we enjoy this without end. O even a summer day elapses so fast!97 He wrote “Preface to Abstinence Rhapsody (戒盈赋序),” “I stay in the East Pavilion to enjoy the cool and prepare a banquet for guests. When the banquet reaches its climax, we drunk contentedly and the music started. I felt that abstinence should be conducted and thus I make this rhapsody.”98 Wang Can wrote “At His Lordship’s Banquet (公宴会诗),” The summer sky sends down nourishing rain, hundreds of plants grow thickly spread. A cool wind clears the sultry heat, dark clouds dispel the fiery sunshine. We gather in grandeur at his lordship’s hall, and sit together beneath the shady inlaid rafters. Round and square bowls are filled with delicious food, tasty wine overflows the gilded jar. … Once I heard a poet’s words: “Never return till you are intoxicated!” How lucky I am to meet the sagacious Lord! His virtue is as great as the heaven. He may follow in the footsteps of Duke Zhou and accomplish a great feat that is beyond compare!99 Ying Chang also wrote a poem of the same name, He opens his court to attract scholars, and sets up his banquet in the hall.

88  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system We debate to relieve our uncertainties, and pick up our brushes to write poems. How graceful are these gentlemen, sharing their peace and harmony! We sit close by, and raise the curtains passing around the replenished feathered cups.100 Chen Lin said in “Banquet Poem (宴会诗), As a brisk wind brings thick clouds, the sun emits its pure light. A friend invites me to a square banquet in the main hall of his mansion. A grey crane prances on a clear stream while beautiful trees shed pleasant, verdant foliage.101 When their banquet reached a climax, Cao Pi asked his wife Zhen to greet his friends. Pei Songzhi quoted from Outline of Records (典略)102 in the “Biography of Wang Can (王粲传)” in Records of the Three Kingdoms, Crown Prince once offered a banquet for various poets. In the height of their merriment, he asked his wife to come out to greet his friends. Therefore, everyone crouched on the ground and only [Liu] Zhen looked into her eyes. When Cao Cao heard this, he imprisoned Liu Zhen. Later Liu Zhen was exempted from the penalty of death and sentenced to servitude.103 4.  Altar of the Soil and Grain (太社)104 and Ancestral Temple The “Wei Capital Rhapsody” says, Having measured the sun’s shadow and examined the stars, they erected the Altar of the Soil and Grain and built the Hallowed Temple. They constructed storied palaces circling around them, just like peaks and cliffs without the slopes.105 The Altar of the Soil and Grain She (社稷) refers to the shrine where the Heaven’s Son offered sacrifices to Earth Deity. The relevant annotation says, “Go out of East Side Gate, go north till North Ye City, turn east and you will enter into Court of Judicial Review (大理寺)106 and the Altar of the Soil and Grain.” This shrine was located east of the Court of Judicial Review. Cao Zhi wrote “Ode to the Altar (社颂),”

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  89 The Altar of the Soil and Grain107 is erected to worship Sacred Mother (后土).108 Cao Cao named his state as Wei, which refers to Earth Virtue according to the five element theory and venerates the color yellow. The location of the shrine in the northeast of the Imperial Palace marks a bold attempt at breaking the stereotype system of “Ancestral Temple to the Left and Altar of the Soil and Grain to the Right (左祖右社)109” in Record of Trades.110 The architectural layout of the Imperial City represents a singular system. It is worth mentioning that the shrine was likely built in the 18th year of the Jian’an period. Hallowed Temple (清庙): This is another name of the Ancestral Temple. The “Annals of Emperor Wudi of Wei” chapter in volume 1 of Records of the Three Kingdoms says, “In the seventh month of the 18th year of the Jian’an period, the Ancestral Temple was first built in Ye. The temple seems located in the southeast of the Imperial City.” Cao Zhi wrote, So graceful are the pagoda trees! They embodies the essence of grain. Their length can fill a box and different trunks have the same spikes. These trees previously grew in the Zhou dynasty and now run riot in the Wei court. These trees should be offered in the Ancestral Temple to care for our ancestors. Emperor Xiandi married Cao Cao’s two daughters as fifth rank concubines. These concubines were granted seals and ribbons at the Ancestral Temple of Wei. Xu Jian et al. recorded Wang Can’s three “Odes to the Ancestral Temple,” The “Ancestral Temple, Part IV” in volume 13 of Writings for Elementary Instruction, Ode 1: The Ancestor of our Lord, now we come to worship You and extol Your virtue like King Wu. You created this royal clan and enacted great codes for everyone to follow. At present, our great cause has made a real success and thus we visit here to thank You for your grace. The glorious Ancient Sovereign, the Great Ancestor, You appeared in the right time indeed! Ode 2: Let’s pay respects to the Royal Ancestor in the solemn-​looking and stately Ancestral Temple.

90  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system A great number of brilliant talents are devoted to pursuing virtue and honesty unyieldingly. As far as we know, since it was completed, this grand temple has been frequented. All those who wanted to pray for blessings can get in this impressive temple. Ode 3: He has pacified this state and the whole world. As the nine feats are accomplished, virtuosi start playing sacrificial music. In chime-​bells, tooth patterns are carved and fine ornaments are placed. A parade of six rows and six lines dance to the beat of the eight instruments. To demonstrate the Lord’s filial duty, we offer sacrifices to You—the Sacred Ancestor and His Wife. The military exploit of the Lord should be attributed to Your blessings.111 In “Study of the Chronicles of Wang Can (王粲行年考),” Miao Yue (缪钺) said in a note concerning the 18th year of the Jian’an period, “I guess that Wang Can wrote the three Odes to the Ancestral Temple (太庙颂) that year because Wei firs built the temple in the same year.”112 “Wang Can was erudite and readily answered any questions. Back then, the old regulations were obsolete and new ones were being made. Wang Can took charge of making these regulations.” (The “Biography of Wang Can,” Records of the Three Kingdoms). Wang Can was seemingly involved in the enactment of regulations on the state institution and ancestral temple. It is presumed that Wang Can wrote Interpretations of the Book of History (尚书释问) in the Ye city. In the later Eastern Wei, Northern Qi, and even Sui and Tang dynasties, this book still prevailed. The “Advice on Learning (勉学)” chapter of Yan’s Family Instruction (颜氏家训) says, “As soon as I visited Ye, I got acquainted with Cui Wenyan (崔文彦) of Boling (博陵) and said that Wang Can once questioned Zheng Xuan’s (郑玄) exegesis of The Book of History.” Scholars recorded Xingchong’s words in the “Biography of Yuan Xingchong (元行冲传)” in volume 120 of Old Book of Tang, Xingchong said, “From then on, Mr Zheng has been regarded as the sole master.” Wang Can said, “There is only one Master east of Yi and Luo and north of the Huai and Han Rivers. Everyone follows Zheng Xuan as their Master. It is often said former scholars made mistakes in interpreting The Book of History and Zheng Xuan expounded all relevant questions. I privately despised this opinion and tried to learn his teachings. As

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  91 I got his Annotation to The Book of History (尚书注), I plunged myself into studying the book. In the end, I understood the meanings of all his annotations, but still found no answer to my questions. I compiled my questions into this book of two volumes.” Wang Can was expert in classics and institutions of the Zhou and Han dynasties. Therefore, he could provide constructive advice on enacting regulations for Cao-​Wei. The Altar of the Soil and Grain was opposite Ancestral Temple on the south. Specifically, the shrine was located in the northeast of the Imperial Palace while the temple was located in the southeast. The shrine stood north of Dongxi Boulevard, sandwiched between the Imperial City and East Gate of Ye City. The Altar of the Soil and Grain of the Court, like the Ancestral Temple, was an auxiliary edifice built around the Imperial City, as Zuo Si said in “Wei Capital Rhapsody,” They constructed storied palaces circling around them, just like peaks and cliffs without the slopes. The area east of the Imperial Palace and the government office and ritual venues south of the Palace were located within the territory of storied palaces (曾宫). This is the archetype of imperial cities of early Chinese capitals. 5.  Bronze Bird Garden West of the Hall of Literary Prosperity stood Bronze Bird Garden. “Wei Capital Rhapsody” says, On the right there are the vegetable garden and circular pond, low fields, and high halls. Thoroughwort holms grow rich and lush; stony rapids bubble and froth. Fine branches hang with fruit; light leaves scatter their fragrance. With its racing tortoises and leaping fish, one seems to be peering down on Lüliang. The speedway winds and twists under the fruit trees; interlocking galleries with contiguous roofs cross back and forth. Soaring stairways, two wagons wide, lead directly west; the Three Terraces, standing in a row, rise rugged and tall.113 The vegetable garden (疏圃), circular pond (曲池), low fields (下畹), high halls (高堂), thoroughwort holms (兰渚), stony rapids (石濑), speedway (驰道), interlocking galleries with contiguous roofs (延阁), and soaring stairways

92  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system (飞陛) are all sights or buildings within the West Garden. The garden is the main venue where Cao Cao, his sons, and other scholars enjoyed gatherings and banquets. These buildings, sights, and rare species can be found in their writings. Cao Pi, for instance, wrote in “Rhapsody of Ascent to the Terrace,” “In the spring of the 17th year of the Jian’an period, I and my brother ascend Bronze Bird Terrace along with His Majesty the King. Father orders each of us to compose a rhapsody.” His “Hunting Rhapsody” says, Get in the Dew Court to listen to political decisions and manipulate various directors. We wander at ease in the Back Court and take a rest at Orchid House. We often ride on a sedan in the West Garden and sit in Jade Hall (玉堂) at leisure. The banquet and poem contest in the West Garden was a literary carnival in the Jian’an period. Cao Zhi wrote, The prince loves to play host and as the banquet ends, he’s lively as ever. In midnight quiet we wander the West Garden, feathered canopy after feathered canopy in the bright moonlight; between the scattered stars the constellations cluster. Autumn-​scented violets cover the long slope, red lotuses spreading over green ponds. Fish patrol the depths, and there one leaps. Bright-​plumed birds are singing in the highest boughs. A lively wind rises, rattling the painted wheels, the weightless chariots drift before it.114 Liu Zhen also depicted the banquet in “At His Lordship’s Banquet (公宴诗),” All through the day we have been sauntering, our pleasure is still high when the sun sets. It lingers long, long into the dark night, so we set off together to roam again. His Lordship’s carriage flies along with its white canopy, followers crowd the sides of the road. The moon comes out to shine on the garden, precious trees are lush and green. The clear river passes by the stone-​paved canal, flowing streams are stopped by the fishing dam. Lotuses spread their blossoms, brimming over the banks of the golden pond.

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  93 Phoenixes rest by the waterside, unicorns gallop over the flying bridge. … I lay aside my brush with a long sigh, this exquisite beauty will never be forgotten.115 The West Garden was home to Lotus Pond (芙蓉池) and Huayin Pond (华阴池. Lotus Pond connected two channels, with their sides being flanked by rare trees. Cao Pi depicted a trip in “Lotus Pond Poem (芙蓉池诗),” We take our chariots to roam at night, and saunter around the West Garden. The double canals flow into each other, fine trees meander along the river. Low boughs touch the feathered canopies, long branches reach into the sky. … Crimson clouds set off the bright moon, brilliant stars emerge from the clouds. … Let us wander to our heart’s content, so we all may live out our 100 years!”116 His “Poem of Bronze Bird Terrace (铜雀园诗)” says, In this morning, we tour the lofty tower and at eventide we enjoy this banquet north of the pond. Chief Supervisor of Alcohol (大酋) bring us luscious wines and Chief Warden of Hunting (兽人) fetch good fowl. Qi girls dance in the eastern style and Qin lutes make western tunes. Birds are whining amid the north forest. Merriment culminates in unsuppressed melancholy. Alas, our hearts and intestines are broken at the moment.”117 Cao Zhi wrote in “Poem,” O how carefree it is to boat on the sapphire Lotus Pond! To the south, two swans are perching; to the north, turtledoves start chirping under a willow.”118 Wang Can said in “Poem (杂诗),” At dusk I travel to the West Garden, hoping to relieve myself of melancholy.

94  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system White waves rise on the meandering pool, red blossoms spread over rows of trees. Up there sits a lonely bird, singing to me with its heart of spring.119 In “Four Poems: 1 (杂诗),” he wrote, On this bright and clear day, I accompany you to the West Garden. Side by side we spur our horses, and gallop together through the heartland. Northward we face the Clear Zhang River, to the west we gaze at Mount Boyang. We wander about the vast reserve, and roam among the waving waters.120 Besides, the poet wrote in “Four Poems: 2,” We line up our carts to rest our horses, enjoying each other’s company by the green river. Orchids give off their heavy fragrance, lotuses shine in their scarlet brilliance. 100 birds fly and flutter, spreading their wings in pursuit of each other. We cast our nets to catch the reclusive fish, our strong bows bring down high flying birds. The white sun starts traveling to the west, our joy makes us forget about going back.121 Qu Tower (曲观) was likely located in the West Garden as well. Cao Zhi wrote in “Guest-​Pleasing Rhapsody (娱宾赋), On a scorching summer day, I come to the Qu Tower to feel the cool. Bronze Bird Garden has an orange tree. Cao Zhi wrote “Orange Rhapsody (桔赋),” The plant is brought back from 10,000 li away and planted in the Bronze Bird Garden. Therefore, this tree stays away from the warmth of the south and bears the brunt of northern cold. Alas, such removal may make the orange perish! In the south, it may grow well; but in the city, it will likely wither.

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  95 In the south, it may produce red fruit; in this city, it will not burst into white blossom. What a pity! Cold and heat are not balanced here and thus its blossoms and fruit are nowhere to be found. I just wish—​the south wind could blow and the orange will sprout new foliage, the summer heat could come and the orange will rejoice at that. Its leaves and twigs would waft in the wind; many a southern bird will perch on the tree. His Majesty’s virtue can embrace everything and even the tiniest thing can feel it. The spirit is elusive and prone to sprout. So, I believe the Heaven’s Way is appropriate. Even if it produces new roots, the orange may not produce new branches; even if it sprouts new leaves, this plant will not blossom. The orange will not change and our state has no such virtue. Patting its twigs gently, I take a deep sigh because such a plant is hard to tame.122 Hollyhock (蜀葵) is a bush resembling shrubalthea flower. Hollyhocks are scattered along the walls of Bronze Bird Terrace. Yu Fan (虞繁) composed “Hollyhock Rhapsody (蜀葵赋),” Hollyhocks are planted sparsely around Bronze Bird Terrace.123 The West Garden is also known as North Garden. Cao Pi sighed in “Parting Sorrow Rhapsody (感离赋),” In the 16th year of the Jian’an period, the Lord launched a western expedition. My mother and brothers followed Him. However, I was left alone in the capital. At this moment, I miss them so much and compose this rhapsody: The autumn wind whistles chillingly. I feel upset and my heart is broken. I go out to the North Garden, where I linger quite long and wish to join my family far away.124 Cao Zhi wrote in “Vernal Excursion Rhapsody,” We have an outing altogether. When we enter the North Garden, we let our horses gallop with great speed.

96  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system Yang Xiu wrote in his rhapsody of the same name, This time we unwind and enjoy taking a tour together. We can visit the North Garden with mirthful glee.125 Literary gatherings at West Garden were the culmination of Jian’an literature’s resplendence. For this reason, Liu Xie (刘勰) analyzed the Jian’an literature in the “Illuminating Poetry (明诗)” chapter in volume 2 of Dragon-​Carving and the Literary Mind (文心雕龙), By the early years of the Jian’an period, five-​character poems flourished. The Cao brothers, emperor, and prince, were well in the lead. Wang [Can], Xu [Gan], Ying [Chang], and Liu [Zhen] raced along in their wake. They all loved wind and the moon, frequented ponds and parks, gloried in honors, and made merry at parties. Generous of spirit and open in displaying talent, they cared not for ingenious minuteness in description, striving only for clarity in expression. These are their common characteristics.126 In the Ming dynasty, Zhong Xing (钟惺) sighed, “West Garden witnessed many literary gatherings. It’s a real pity that none of Cai Yong (蔡邕), Kong Rong (孔融) or Mi Heng (祢衡) could attend the events and make impromptu poems.”127 West Garden was also the Cao-​Wei dynasty’s site for receiving tourists. When nomad chiefs and envoys from the North, Northwest, or Northeast arrived, the dynasty would treat them in the garden. Cao Pi wrote in “Poem of Bronze Bird Garden,” Chief Supervisor of Alcohol bring us luscious wines and Chief Warden of Hunting fetch good fowl. Qi girls dance in the eastern style and Qin lutes make western tunes.128 Cao Zhi wrote in “To Ding Yi (与丁廙诗),” The town’s gatehouse was brimming with noble guests, delicacies in plenty issued from the kitchen. I and several very good friends were holding a private party in a corner of the town. Music in western style was played on the zither of Qin, eastern melodies sang from the harp of Qi. All the bowls went back to the kitchen clean, the wine cups drained of every drop.129

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  97 He wrote in “Sitting in Attendance with the Crown Prince (侍太子坐诗),” The dazzling sun shines through a clear sky, the seasonal rains having laid to rest the flowing dust. The ice has dispelled the gathering heat, my body is cooled by the breeze. The golden goblets are brimming with clear wine, delicacies spread across the table. The ladies of Qi serve up their peculiar music, and girls from Qin present their songs. My prince, how gracefully he conducts himself, suddenly his skills seem to have fallen straight from heaven.130 These poems bring to life the scenes of mirthful banquets teeming with delicacies and wines. Storehouses of the Cao-​Wei court were also located in the West Garden. One is known as Baicang storehouse (白藏库) and the other is called Stable of the Imperial Coachman (乘黄厩).131 Baicang storehouse has 174 rooms and is named “Baicang” because Examples of Refined Usage says, “autumn belongs to white in terms of the five-​color theory and bears witness to harvesting and collecting.” “Wei Capital Rhapsody” says, In the Baicang storehouse, its riches are boundless. It equals the abundance of the Grand Treasury; and draws in all the wealth of the world. Zong cloth is heaped here in great piles; with precious stones and fine silks it is filled. This is where the customs’ stones are properly balanced; where commodities and revenues are carefully examined. Yan bows that fill the arsenals are flexible and strong; Ji horses that crowd the stables are stout steeds.132 It is obvious that the location of the storehouses in the northwestern area of the Palace City complies with the traditional Chinese five-​element and yin-​ yang doctrines. (IV)  Government offices outside the Palace City The government office of Outer Court lay outside the Imperial City. It consisted of Office of Counselor-​in-​Chief (相国府),133 Office of Censor-​in-​ Chief (御史大夫府),134 Court for the Palace Revenues’ Official Designation (少府寺),135 Court of Imperial Sacrifices (奉常寺)136, Treasury (大农寺),137 Court for the Imperial Stud (太仆寺)138, Court for the Commandant-​in-​Ordinary

98  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system (中尉寺),139 Court of Judicial Review, Palace Altar of the Soil and Grain, and Office for the Chamberlain for Attendants (郎中令府)140 according to extant texts. Zuo Si said in “Wei Capital Rhapsody,” Here they establish offices, apportion duties; and each official lives at his command, dwells at his post. The city is jammed with bureaus and headquarters, scattered with quarters and gates. And in these bureaus and stations are positions equal to the Three Directors of Affairs (unofficial reference to Three Dukes), Offices that outnumber the Six Ministers. They have the name of Chamberlain for Ceremonials, the title of Chamberlain for Law Enforcement. These huge buildings are uniformly built, with ornate walls and eaves of equal height, solemn and stately staircases, double gates repeatedly locked. Officials like Master Yin abide here, assisting the dynasty, forming pillars of state.141 The annotation says, Go south from Sima Gate, turn west, going north until the northernmost tip of the road and you will find first the Office of Counselor-​in-​Chief to the east, second the Office of Censor-​in-​Chief and last the Court for the Palace Revenues’ Official Designation. Turn east and you will find Court of Imperial Sacrifices at the northernmost point and the Court for the National Treasury a bit southward. Go due east from East Side Gate and you will find the Court for the Imperial Stud at the western tip of the road and the Court for the Commandant-​in-​Ordinary a bit farther. Go northeast from East Side Gate until the North Ye City, turn east and you will find first the Court of Judicial Review, then Palace Altar of the Soil and Grain, and lastly the Office for the Chamberlain for Attendants. During the reign of King of Wei, Steward for Ceremonials (太常)142 was still named Chamberlain for Ceremonials (奉常)143 and Chamberlain for Law Enforcement (廷尉) was still named Grand Judge (大理).144 Actually, in the 18th year of the Jian’an period, the king established Chamber for Law Enforcement, Chamberlain for the National Treasury (大农),145 Chamberlain for the Palace Revenues, and Chamberlain for the Imperial Insignia (中尉).146 In the 21st year, Zhong Yao (钟繇), then Chamber for Law Enforcement, started to act as Counselor-​in-​Chief and the king established Steward for Ceremonials and Chamberlain for the Imperial Clan. The following year the king assigned Hua Xin (华歆) as Censor-​in-​Chief and first established Chamberlain for Palace Garrison (卫尉).147 When Emperor Wudi ruled the kingdom, he established

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  99 Counselor-​in-​Chief (相国) and Censor-​in-​Chief and appointed deputies for the Three Dukes. Besides, Cao Cao established nearly Nine Ministers, which outnumber the ordinary Six Ministers. Counselor-​in-​Chief: A New Account of the Tales of the World (世说新语) says, Yang Xiu once served as Cao Cao’s superintendent of records. At the time (208) the gate of the chancellery was being constructed, and they were just laying on the round and square rafters (榱桷). Cao Cao himself came out to look, and then had someone inscribe the doors with the character huo, “alive,” and promptly departed. As soon as Yang saw it he immediately ordered the gate to be torn down. After this was done, he said, “Huo (活) in the middle of men (门),’ ‘gate,’ is the character kuo (阔), ‘huge.’ His Highness was evidently displeased that the gate was too large.”148 Court of Judicial Review: This court, also known as North Court (北寺), lay below the North City in the northeast of the Imperial City. Liu Zhen was encaged therein for his effrontery in looking Cao Pi’s concubine in the eye. During the period, He felt wronged and missed his friend Xu Gan. Therefore, Liu Zhen wrote “To Xu Gan (赠徐干诗),” Who’s to say we are far apart? Only this palace wall is between us. Here, where harsh restrictions are enforced, I have no means to convey my feelings. Deep in my heart I long for a sight of you, sighing, sighing, unable to speak. I sit and rise, I rise and sit, my moods change many times a day. I step through the compound’s northern gate, and gaze at the distant West Garden. Slender willows grow along the roadway, a square pond holds clear water. Weightless leaves are twirling with the wind, look, how the birds flutter by! Isolation makes us easily stirred, tears drop down my clothes. I look towards the brilliant sun, how brightly it hangs in the blue! It sheds its light all over the world, with no discretion for thing or man. Only I am left with this deep regret, unable to enjoy amongst others, its favor.149

100  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system This poem tells us that the Court of Judicial Review overlooked the royal garden across the path. The Court of Judicial Review had a north gate facing the north city wall. Along the city wall, there was a street lined with willows. Government Office of Ye County: It was located in the southern part of the city. Ouyang Xun (欧阳询) et al. quoted from Tales of the Customs (风俗通) in the “Ducks (鸭)” chapter in volume 91 of Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters, When Wang Qiao (王乔) acted as Magistrate of Ye County, he often left the county for the court. Emperor wondered how he could arrive so fast because there was no carriage or horse. So, he secretly sent Grand Scribe (太史) to observe. According to this scribe, a pair of wild ducks came from southeast carrying him. As a result, a net was released to catch the ducks, only to get an official shoe presented to the Director.150 This anecdote sounds absurd, yet reflects the rough location of the county’s government office. The county yamen or government office of the Wei and Jin dynasties should follow the practice of the Eastern Han epoch, and the county head took charge of security affairs. This magistrate was usually assigned to a competent person. The “Biography of Gaotang Long (高堂隆传)” in volume 25 of Records of the Three Kingdoms says, At first, Zhan Qian (栈潜) of Rencheng (任城) acted as county head several times during the reigns of Cao Cao. Once when he administered Ye county, Emperor Wendi was still the crown prince and indulged in hunting. Thus, the prince often went out in the morning and returned at night. Seeing this, Zhan Qian admonished, “A lord or prince should build defense works to protect his state and assign guards to the capital with great caution. The ‘Greater Odes of the Kingdom (大雅)’ of The Book of Poetry says that The circle of [the king’s] Relatives is a fortified wall. We must not let the fortified wall get destroyed; and that thus your plans do not reach far, and I therefore strongly admonish you.151 If you go on indulging in hunting, it means you won’t set any limit to your indulgence and will turn a blind eye to all hidden strife or conflict. For this reason, I feel very concerned.” The crown prince felt greatly upset and went out less frequently than before.152 (V)  Twin gatetowers and streets Twin Gatetowers (双阙): Scarlet Gatetower and Black Gatetower (黑阙). Examples of Refined Usage says, “Grand Gatetower (象魏) is a gatetower.” Explanation of Names (释名) says, “Que (阙) refers to a tower. There are often two towers flanking a gate. In other words, a passageway stands between the two towers.” Zhou Officials (周官) claims, “In the first lunar month, Great Steward (太宰) hung laws and regulations at the Grand Gatetower. As the

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  101 gatetower is called ‘Xiangwei,’ the laws and regulations are also given this name.”153 Twin Gatetower—​Scarlet Gatetowers and Black Gatetower—​stood on Dongxi Boulevard south of the Ye Palace City. Cao Zhi said in “Rhapsody on Ascending the Terrace,” Twin Watch Towers floating atop the zenith of the empyrean. He also wrote in “The Immortals,” The Celestial Gate stands majestically tall, its Double Towers are higher than 10,000 zhang. His poem “To Xu Gan” says, Midnight let me travel, and travel between palaces’ twin towers; Fan Qin wrote in “Pagoda Tree Rhapsody,” Beautiful trees produce emerald foliage between the twin towers. Zuo Si wrote in “Wei Capital Rhapsody,” There is the North Watchtower, high and imposing, followed by the Principal Gate on the south. They thrust upward like twin boulders, and through them chariots are driven two abreast. The annotation says, “The East Gate, West Gate, South Gate, and North Gate each have twin towers. The towers beside each gate lead to a long street.” Archaeology has shown that there are twin towers at East Gate, West Gate, and South Gate. All the gatetowers are scattered along the Dongxi Boulevard. Especially, twin towers stand in front of Changhe Gate opposite the middle gate of the south city wall. An excavation report indicates that the middle section of Dongxi Boulevard of Ye city bends south slightly. The slight bend should be the location of the twin gatetowers. All the streets and roads led to the corresponding city gates. The directions of the streets can be inferred from the locations of the city gates. As historical records and archaeological investigation indicate, the city had six main streets/​roads: Five streets were laid out northward. One road, namely Dongxi Boulevard, pointed eastward. The boulevard connected East Gate and West Gate. South of this boulevard were located three streets sprawling north from the three south gates: First, the west one stretched towards Bronze Bird Garden. Second, the middle one stretched towards Hall of Literary Prosperity

102  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system of Outer Court. Third, the east one stretched towards Noble Quarter. All the three streets adjoined the boulevard on the north. South of the boulevard were situated two streets: (1), The east one stretched south from First East Gate to the boulevard. (2) The west one stretched south from First West Gate to the same boulevard. At present, archaeologists have explored the following sections of the streets/​roads: First, the boulevard was 2,100 m long and 13 m wide, with its middle section bending south slightly. “We discovered there are two road surfaces: The first one is the lower road surface built in the late Eastern Han epoch and Cao-​Wei dynasty and used through the Sixteen States. The second one is the upper road surface built and used in the Eastern Wei and Northern Qi dynasties.”154 Second, the streets were located south of the boulevard. The middle one was 730 m long and 17 m wide and known as the main artery of the greatest width; the earth depth was 0.5–​1 m; it was built in the late Eastern Han epoch and Cao-​Wei dynasty. The west one was 800 m long and about 13 m wide, flanked by 0.6–​1 meter wide and 0.55–​1 meter deep trenches; it had two road surfaces: First, the lower road surface was built in the late Eastern Han epoch and Cao-​Wei dynasty. Second, the upper road surface was built no later than the Eastern Wei and Northern Qi dynasties. The unearthed east one was 150 m long and about 13 m wide. Third were the streets north of the boulevard. The unearthed east one was 450 m long and about 13 m wide while the unearthed west one was just 70 m long and about 10 m wide. As the first west gate of the north city wall remains unexplored, we are still uncertain whether it directly led to that gate. Besides, there were another two roads from the boulevard to the south city wall. One stretched from Qianfu Gate (潜伏门) of the north wall to Dongxi Boulevard between Fengyang Gate (凤阳门) and Zhongyang Gate (中阳门), while the other one stretched from Sima Gate of Inner Court to the south city wall between Guangyangmen Street and Zhongyangmen Street. In the northern half of the city, there was another road spreading from the east of Inner Court, past East Side Gate and west of Court of Judicial Review below the north wall, and towards the boulevard. Therefore, the city at least had nine main streets. As Zhang Zixin (张子欣) said in Writings of Archaeology in Ye, Fengyangmen Street (凤阳门大街) trailed south and turned east at its southern end, which means that Fengyang Gate and the street named after this gate should not be located on the same straight line. In other words, when you enter the city through Fengyang Gate, you should turn west and then walk north before reaching Bronze Bird Garden. There were pagoda trees or willows on both sides of the streets of the city. Zuo Si depicted this in Wei Capital Rhapsody, They have dredged conduit ditches to flank the roads; planted rows of green pagoda trees to shade the avenues.155 The road from Hall of Literary Prosperity to Twin Gatetowers was flanked by pagoda trees, and the artery road from the gatetowers to the middle gate of

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  103 the south city wall was also similarly planted with pagoda trees. In contrast, both sides of Dongxi Boulevard were dotted with willows. Liu Zhen wrote in “To Xu Gan,” I step through the compound’s northern gate, and gaze at the distant West Garden. Slender willows grow along the roadway, a square pond holds clear water. When Liu Zhen was imprisoned, he looked west from the inner gate of the Court of Judicial Review, reminiscing about his friend Xu Gan and seeing slender willows along the channel of Dongxi Boulevard. (VI)  Quarter lanes (里巷) Li refers to the residential quarter of nobles or common people. Now there are some extant quarters such as Changshou Quarter, Jiyang Quarter, Yongping Quarter, Sizhong Quarter, and Noble Quarter. “Wei Capital Rhapsody” says, The city quarters include: Longevity and Lucky Yang, Perpetual Peace and Thoughts Loyal. There is also the Consort’s Ward placed east of the palace. From their gates come distinguished persons; their lanes teem with nobles and peers. In the Protector General’s palace they dwell in halls adorned with latticed windows. Every morning coaches and riders in massive numbers congregate within its midst.156 Liu Kui (刘逵) notated, “Changshou, Jiyang, Yongping, and Sizhong are four quarter names: First, Changshou and Jiyang Quarters were located in the east. Second, Shidou Bridge (part of Shidou Weir) was located in the center. Third, Jiyang Quarter was located in the south. At last, Changshou Quarter was located in the north. All of them are aristocratic quarters.” During the reign of Cao-​Wei, Cao Yuan served as Protector General (都护将军)157 and thus his residence would be located within one of the aristocratic quarters. Within the quarters, there were lanes, such as those located east of the palace and inhabited by the families of Wang Can, Liu Zhen, Xu Gan, Chen Lin, and Ruan Yu. Let’s read the following poems. Liu Zhen wrote, I put on a gown and walk out of the lane, seeing a parade of official sedans decorated with plain canopies.

104  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system Therefore, his residential quarter was not an exclusive area for nobles rather than common people. Chen Lin wrote alike, The season changes, the weather settles, the autumn wind wafts clear and cool. Living in leisure I feel disconsolate, so I ride in my cart to visit friends. We wander together along the stream, and climb the heights of the city wall. To the east we gaze at the farmers’ fields, and backward we cast our gaze at the homesteads. The beautiful trees are shedding their green leaves, scarlet blossoms fall from fragrant bushes. Alas, both sun and moon are galloping away, and my life will follow them into the west. If I don’t accomplish our goals right now, what will be written about on the bronze? Clinging to this thought I return to my bedroom, with deep emotion I chant the ancient classics. While our Lord is still among us, I would establish my virtue and fame.158 The series of activities mentioned in the above lines show us that the poet also lived in the li for nobles in the east of the palace. The eastern area of the city was a getaway for him. Wang Can wrote in “Accompany Military Campaigns: 2 (从军诗),” Singing and dancing we enter Ye City, all our wishes met and fulfilled. We spend our day at our Lord’s grand reception, at sunset we return to our homes. Outside we participate in his enlightened rule, inside we do not neglect our familial duties.159 As these lines say, Wang returned home to one of the aristocratic quarters after handling affairs in the office. (VII)  Ye market (邺市) The quarters and neighborhoods of Ye city were home to taverns and hotels. Any visitor or merchant could occupy a guestroom therein. The market opened at regular times and a flag-​topped pavilion (旗亭) was set up to administer market dealings. When the market was open, countless people crowded in and tons of goods were piled up, which indicates the business prosperity at that time. As Zuo Si said in “Wei Capital Rhapsody,”

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  105 They have built guest lodges all around the city districts, decorated the places where visitors gather, and beautified the gates and doors of sumptuous towers: Beginning in the Jian’an era these things were first constructed. They cover the walls with thatch, plaster the chambers; the rooms and verandas are intricately joined. Engraving knives never cease their carving; the carvers long have practiced their craft. The Guangcheng Hostel cannot compare with them; the Gao Street residences could not match them. Elaborating on the old Three Markets, merchants have started up shops; Tucked along the level thoroughfares, they radiate in all directions. They arrange the serried stalls for an orderly display, place walls and gates as collar and girdle. They have alleviated fluctuations in supply and demand; at high noon, everyone converges on the marketplace. They erect flag-​topped pavilion spiring tall and lofty, boast extravagantly of the grandeur of the things to be seen. In the hundreds of shop rows carts strike hub to hub, and follow in a continuous line, 10,000 strong. Leaning on crossbars, lashing their steeds, these market patrons, sleeves gathered like tents, scurry and scatter. They assemble from the eight directions, coalesce into a solid mass; it is the most wondrous show of elegance and glitter! With contracts fairly concluded, sales are made; spade and knife coins are exchanged in countless numbers. The materials are fashioned by craftsmen; the goods are circulated by merchants. Wares that are hard to get, these shops do not stock them. The utensils are of general use and constant need; rejecting shoddiness, they prefer durability. They do not sell illicit merchandise and do not overcharge; and they display a quiet, gentle manner.160 The neighborhood market (坊市) would be located south of the Palace City, which is at odds with the rearward market layout in Record of Trades. Jiao Zhiqin and Fu Chun at Anyang Museum picked up five pieces of pottery at the relic site of Ye. There are two vertical characters “Ye Market (业市)” inside at the bottom of these pieces. These pieces should therefore be gauges of the government office and used in the marketplace to prevent any dealer or peddler from skimping. Besides, they collected a tile with character ting (亭). “The tile diameter is 14 centimeter and the cincture width is one centimeter. The character is at the heart of the tile, with cloud patterns being located on

106  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system all four sides. … The tile might be members on the flag-​topped pavilion in Ye during the Wei and Jin dynasties.”161 (VIII)  Outside buildings Around the Ye city of Cao-​Wei were scattered ponds, palaces, hotels, stations, and pavilions among other buildings. All these buildings were inhabited by Cao Cao, his two sons, senior officials, and nobles during sightseeing, sacrifice offering, or traveling. Xuanwu Reservoir or Pond was located in the northwest of Ye. The “Annals of Emperor Wudi” of Records of the Three Kingdoms, In the first lunar month of the spring of the 13th year of the Jian’an period, [Cao Cao] built Xuanwu Pond to train hits water troops.” Later Cao Cao expanded the pond to a garden of the same name, which gained widespread fame. The garden was a habitat of lotuses, bamboos, trees, grapes as well as buildings like fishing weirs, and fishing platforms. Zuo Si wrote in “Wei Capital Rhapsody,” Its park is the Xuanwu or Dark Warrior (玄武), which adjoins a dense wood. They have circled it with walls and opened a preserve, where belvederes look out one upon another. Large fruits grow in thick clusters; giant trees shoot up fathoms high. Thicket bamboo and dwarf bamboo embrace the wind; grapevines cast heavy shadows. The eddying pools are deep; the standing water is thick. Eulalia and marsh grass vigorously flourish; metaplexis and cattails are densely clustered. Red lotuses, riding the waves, glisten brightly; green water chestnuts, drifting on the swells, are soaked and drenched.162 Cao Pi, Cao Zhi, and other scholars often visited the park and wrote poems. The “Lakes (陂)” in volume 9 of Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters includes what Cao Pi wrote in “Written by Xuanwu Pond (于玄武陂作诗),” We brothers leave together for an outing, driving our carts to the west of the town. Out in the wilderness vast fields have been tilled, rivers and canals cross into each other. How sturdy and lush the crops! Flowing waves stir up a moving sound.

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  107 Water chestnuts cover the green waters, crimson blossoms shoot from lotuses. Hanging willows make dark green shadows, stretching along the bank of the pond. We land on an islet to gaze at the outstretched island, surrounded by happy flocks of chirruping birds. Duckweeds float and flow all around, lightly drifting under a gentle wind.163 Cao Zhi wrote “Rhapsody of Wild Goose Leaving the Waterside (离徼雁赋),” I took a tour around Xuanwu Pond. Suddenly, I saw a wild goose leaving the waterside. But unluckily, this bird failed to fly away. I ordered a boatman to chase it and he succeeded in catching it.164 It was unexpected that a pond built for military purposes blossomed into a picturesque garden, a haunt for local poets. Wang Can wrote in a poem, On this bright and clear day, I accompany you to the West Garden. Side by side we spur our horses, and gallop together through the heartland. Northward we face the Clear Zhang River, to the west we gaze at Mount Boyang. We wander about the vast reserve, and roam among the waving waters.165 From these lines, we can know what their tourist route was, and where the pond was located. The pond was sandwiched between the boulevard outside the west gate of Ye and the Zhang River. At present, there is a large hollow northwest of the present-​day site of Three Terraces. This hollow, dubbed “Big Black Pit (大黑坑),” has been called the Xuanwu Pond of Cao-​Wei. Now the rippling water has become stretches of arable field. But if you stand on the remaining Golden Phoenix Terrace, you can still see traces of the former pond. The “Huan River (洹水)” chapter of The Commentary on the Waterway Classic says, [The Huan River], flowing northeast past Ye city by south. This branch is referred to as New River (新河). Then the rivulet runs east and further splits into two branches: The first branch flows north, past Tower of East Light. … past Jianchun Gate to the north … This branch flows west of Xuanwu Park. Previously, the garden had a pond of the same name where people went boating. Also, there were Yuliang Fishing Terrace (鱼梁钓台), bamboo groves, and bushes. Unfortunately, now the pond

108  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system and groves and bushes are gone and there is nothing left to see. In the end, the branch flows west into the Zhang River. Xuanwu Pond and Park had fallen into oblivion in the Northern Wei dynasty. Jianchun Gate was the East Gate of Ye of Later Zhao in the Sixteen States period and Tower of East Light (东明观) was located at the southeast corner of the city. The Huan River flowed north around the east city wall, west around the north city wall before entering Xuanwu Park. This indicates that the garden lay northwest of Ye and south of the Zhang River. According to the “Record of Official Titles” in volume 24 of The Book of Jin, Cao-​Wei and Western Jin set up Superintendent of Xuanwu Park (玄武苑丞) in Ye. This official came under the Chamberlain for Dependencies (大鸿胪)166 and managed the garden. Back then, Xuanwu Park was an important royal garden of Ye. In the Northern Wei dynasty, the garden and pond had become dilapidated. When Eastern Wei and Northern Qi built their capitals at the same location, they renovated the city. After the Northern Song epoch, “the pond and groves and bushes are all gone and there is nothing left to behold.”167 Fragrant Forest Garden: As Record of the Ye City says, “This garden was first built by Emperor Wudi of Wei. Later it was renamed ‘Hualin (华林)’ to avoid the effrontery of using the same character as King Qin’s name. It was rebuilt by Shi Hu during the 14th year of the Jianwu period of Later Zhao.”168 Ganoderma Garden (灵芝园): Illustrated Gazetteer (图经) quotes from Record of Wei (魏志), “When Emperor Taizu was enfeoffed with Ye, he built Fragrant Forest Garden in the east and Ganoderma Garden in the West. In the second year of the Huangchu period, sweet dew fell in the garden.”169 As its name suggests, this garden had been famous for rare species. Ganoderma Pond (灵芝池): The “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye” of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period says, Record of the Ye City tells us that the pond was located three li west of the city. In the third year of Huangchu period, Emperor Wendi excavated the pond and the following year flocks of pelicans arrived. I guess this anecdote is wrong and the pond mentioned above should be located in Luoyang according to Tales of Luoyang. Cockfighting Terrace (斗鸡台): Record of the Ye City says, “Xuanwu Pond was located south of the Zhang River and Cockfighting Terrace was located five li northeast of the river.” Cao Zhi wrote in “On the Renowned Cities (名都篇),” In the eastern suburb they gather around to watch cockfights, their horses prance the length of the avenue.170 Later on, Shi Hu followed suit at the same site.171 This terrace was likely located northeast of the city.

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  109 Lodging Facility (都亭)172 and Jian’an Mansion (建安邸): Li Shan notated in “Wei Capital Rhapsody,” “In the eastern area of the Ye city, there were the Lodging Facility and a Courier Path (都道); in the north, there was a Grand Mansion (大邸). The mansion gate and hallway were built during the Jian’an period. The mansion, in fact a hostel, was named after the period because the people attached great importance to it back then.”173 Cao-​Wei built Hostel and Lodging Facility in the north and east of the city, following in the steps of Chang’an and Luoyang. Royal Field (藉田): The royal field was set up east of the city in the 19th year of the Jian’an period. The “Annals of Emperor Wudi” in volume 1 of Records of the Three Kingdoms, “In the first month of the spring of the 19th year, the royal field was cultivated for the first time.” Cao Zhi wrote in “Treatise on the Royal Field (藉田论),” “In the east of Ye, there is a royal field of four mu that serves cultivation of the royalty.”174 Pan Palace: “The Book of Rites (礼志)” of Book of Song (宋书) says, “In the 22nd year of the Jian’an period, Wei built a Pan Palace in the south of the city.” It is actually the academy established in Ye by Cao Cao. Cao Zhi wrote in “Ode to the Academy (学宫颂),” Since the Classics of Five Lords and the Rites of Three Kings went extinct, there has been only one great sage—​Confucius. As response to his time, Confucius emerged and enlightened the world. So, I make this ode: Confucius is the best of the best, the brightest of the brightest. After his death, Nature (性) and Heavenly Way (天道) are well beyond reach. His disciple Zhongyou (仲由) pursued studies according to previous records. Zaiyu (宰予) slept in the daytime and Confucius admonished him for being so lazy. All disciples of Confucius kept in mind his enlightening discourses. Songs aim to emphasize the meanings of the letters and writings aim to express the aspirations of those disciples. But for the recording of his disciples, the sayings of Confucius won’t be available to later scholars. Here I extol Confucius as a father of the people because he is a great master. He has a great personality by nature and knows well various skills. His virtue can be compared to Five Lords and Three Kings and thus he should be worshiped together with them. His sagacious and prudent mind is a mirror for others and enlightens everyone in this regard. His benevolence permeates the cosmos. and his aspiration soars across the cloud and rainbow.

110  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system He cultivated 3,000 disciples and all of them were of excellent caliber. They followed the principle of benevolence and stuck to the Tao. As I worship him, I find him even greater than I think and I could benefit a lot from this master.175 Confucian Temple: This seems to be located adjacent to Nanpan Palace south of the city. Ancient academies often adjoined Confucian Temples. Cao Zhi said in “Ode to the Confucian Temple (孔子庙颂),” The previous Confucian Temple is renovated and its main house is expanded. A great number of students can study in the temple! As the enlightenment of the lord is conducted, all vassals will be prevented from revolting. The teachings of Confucius will prevail and prosper as an eternal code of ethics. As Confucius passed away, gods and spirits may pay respects to him. There is many a good omen that foretells the future of our empire. Let Confucianism enlighten the prosperous areas and the remote places.176 The lines “foretells the future of our empire. Let Confucianism enlighten the prosperous areas and the remote places” read akin to “Our clan has achieved glorious kingship and takes great pride in achieving this” and “Serve the Han court with all our heart and soul” in his “Rhapsody of Ascent to the Terrace.” It is therefore presumed that the ode was made at Ye to eulogize the Confucian Temple of the city; coincidentally, the Confucian Temple was erected in the 22nd year of the Jian’an period. Selected Seal and Stone Inscriptions (金石萃编) says that the inscription was composed in the early Huangchu period and the temple was located in Qufu (曲阜). So, this issue is worthy of further investigation. Shrine for Ximen Bao: This shrine is located around 15 li southwest of Ye city. The “Turbid Zhang River” chapter of The Commentary on the Waterway Classic quotes Cao Pi’s “Expedition Rhapsody (述征赋),” I admire Ximen Bao for his great feat. Suddenly, I see the Spiritual Venue of him. The term Spiritual Venue (灵宇) refers to the shrine of Ximen Bao. Today the relic site is still visible.

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  111 In Fukou Pass northwest of Ye, there is a Heilong dong (Black Dragon Cave 黑龙洞) where locals prayed for rain in the Han and Wei dynasties. The cave has springs that are known as one of the sources of the Fu River. (X)  Ye City’s water conservancy works The city’s water conservancy works owe their origin to Ximen Bao in Wei of the Warring States period. According to the “House of Wei (魏世家)” in volume 44 of Records of the Grand Historian, in the 25th year (422 B C ) of Marquis Wen of Wei, “Ximen Bao was assigned as Magistrate of Ye and he governed the Henei region very well.” Zhai Huang (翟璜) recommended him by telling Li Ke (李克), “Our Lord (Marquis Wen of Wei) worried about the Ye and thus I recommended Ximen Bao to him.”177 “Ximen Bao was appointed as Magistrate of Ye. Before he left for Ye, he went to say good-​bye to Marquis Wen of Wei. Marquis Wen said, “You go there to make great contributions and gain a high reputation.” Ximen Bao asked, “Is there any way of making great contributions and gaining a high reputation?” Marquis Wen said, “Yes. After you arrive there, go to visit those respectable old people in every town and village and ask them to recommend worthy scholars to you. Then you can regard these scholars as mentors and learn from them. Look for those trying to cover up others’ strong points and exposing their shortcomings and then verify their statements to see whether or not they are true. Many things are specious. Young foxtail grass looks like cereal crops. One might confuse the yellow skin of a urus with that of a tiger. White bones are thought to be ivories. Quasi-​jade stone (武夫) looks like jade. All these things are specious.178 This dialog means that the king put special emphasis on governance of the city and that Ximen Bao was a competent, practical official. “Ximen Bao arrived in Ye and asked an elder what problems they had.” The elder told him they were afflicted with the horrible custom of marrying a maiden to the River Spirit (河伯). Then Ximen Bao threw the witch into the Zhang River and thus abolished the ugly custom. “Instantly, he ordered the people to excavate 12 channels to divert the river water to the fields and all the fields were well-​irrigated.”179 When it comes to King Xiang, great-​grandson of Marquis Wen of Wei, Shi Qi became Magistrate of Ye and further renovated the water conservancy project, diverting the Zhang River to irrigate Ye. The “Pleasure in Success (乐成)” chapter of Annals of Lü Buwei is cited in the “Treatise on Canals,” The Book of Han, King Xiang of Wei was drinking with his officials. When all were slightly high, … king said, “May all officials be the kind of official Ximen Bao was.” “The family of Wei has distributed to vassals parcels of land of 100

112  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system mu each,” responded Shi Qi. “Only the territory of Ye was 200 mu but the fields were bad. The Zhang River ran alongside them, but Ximen Bao did not know how to make use of it; this shows his ignorance. If he knew but said nothing, this shows his disloyalty. One should not emulate such ignorance and disloyalty.” … The king agreed and made him Magistrate of Ye. In consequence, Shi Qi went to carry out the project. … When the water flowed and the people thoroughly enjoyed its benefits, they all made a song, Ye had a sage magistrate, this was Sir Shi. He channeled the river Zhang to irrigate the lands round Ye. What had from old been a salty waste now produces rice and grain.”180 In the Eastern Han epoch, Cui Shi (崔寔) said in his political treatise, “Shi Qi irrigated the Ye city by diverting the Zhang River, and thus local people sang praises of him.” Shi Qi acted as Magistrate of Ye more than 100 years after Ximen Bao. His merits can be summed up as two points: First, he repaired Ximen Bao’s project. Second, he expanded the area of irrigation, leading the river to nearby fields and improving the alkaline soil. When later scholars read Records of the Grand Historian and The Book of Han, they may think the two books contradict each other. But actually, both persons are initiators of the local water conservancy project, and thus Zuo Si lauded them in “Wei Capital Rhapsody,” Ximen irrigated the area first; Shi Qi watered it next. Shi Qi criticized Ximen Bao because his water conservancy project was not given full play and the area nearby Ye was not yet irrigated. Twelve Channels of West Gate were parallel from top to bottom and most of them diverted water from the heads, crossing the south–​north path and inconveniencing traffic. For this reason, the “Biographies of Jesters” chapter of Records of the Grand Historian, The 12 channels had crossed the path. At the start of the Han dynasty, the magistrate claimed that the channels and bridges intercepted the path and should be incorporated so that every three channels could be incorporated into a single bridge. The local people didn’t listen to his opinion because the regulation was set by Ximen Bao. They said the decision of a prudent man like Ximen Bao should not be changed and thus the incumbent magistrate withdrew his proposal. During the reign of Emperor Wudi of Han, the Zhang River was branched off into channels connected with some ponds for water storage and irrigation’s

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  113 sake, achieving greater efficiency. The “Biographies of Jesters” chapter of Records of the Grand Historian says, “Even today the water conservancy project still works and the local people benefit greatly from this project.” After the conquest of the city, Cao Cao initiated major water conservancy projects based on traditional works, forming a municipal water system consisting of outer water system, inner water system, and surrounding water system. One of the main water conservancy works outside the city was Heavenly Well Weir (天井堰). They renovated the 12 channels, and built a weir by throwing rocks around the lower reaches of the channel-​head. Therefore, the location where the Zhang River was controlled to flow east was named Heavenly Well Weir. In its 20 li long range, there were 12 artificial channels (墱); the distance between every two channels was 300 steps. In this way, the water source was divided into 12 branches, the mouth of which each had a gate to control waterflow.181 It was located in the southwest of Ye city according to The Commentary on the Waterway Classic. The “Turbid Zhang River” chapter of The Commentary on the Waterway Classic says, The Zhang River flows northeast and passes by the Shrine of Ximen Bao, … The water along the right bank converges with a branch. More accurately, the upper reach of this branch joins the Zhang River west of Ganhui county (邯会) and the eastern section of this branch converges with the Gan River (邯水). The Gan River rises in the northeastern part of the Mount Gan (邯山) and runs by the west side of the past Ganhui county seat before flowing north into this branch, which explains how the county gets its name. Zhang Yan (张晏) said, the branch flows southwest and converges into the river in the Mount Gan. Today, there are still relevant channels gurgling along the county seat. … Then the river flows northeast into the Zhang River. When Marquis Wen of Wei appointed Ximen Bao as Magistrate of Ye, Ximen Bao diverted the Zhang River to irrigate the fields of Ye to support the local people. Later in the reign of King Xiang of Wei, Shi Qi served as magistrate and built a weir on the river for irrigation purposes; the fields became fertile and all locals sang of his great feat. Cao Cao built a Heavenly Well Weir (天井堰), intercepting the river and making it flow east. There were 12 cascades created across a section of 20 li, with a distance of 300 steps between every two cascades. In this way, each cascade poured down into the next cascade; each cascade had 12 water flows and each flow had a sluice gate. Lu Hui said in Record of Ye, “The place where the cascades were pouring down is called Yanling Mere (堰陵泽).”

114  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system The relic sites of Ximen Bao’s and Shi Qi’s channels were located in the southwest of Wei. So, Cao Cao’s works should be at the same location. The Zhang River comes from the southwest of Ye, flows past the west of the city and then flows northeast. Those channels were excavated to increase the water level; as a result, the Zhang River was diverted to flow east again. The well-​irrigated field should be on the southern and eastern banks of the river. The southwestern area of Ye lay on high terrain and had a solid riverbed, which endowed the area with ideal irrigating conditions. To excavate the Changming Channel, Cao Cao diverted water from the south of the city to go past Bronze Bird Terrace and flow east, but not from the nearer Purple Path (紫陌). But why? That is because it was difficult to divert water therefrom and it was impossible to build Heavenly Well Weir. It is reasonable that the weir was located in the southwest of Ye. The weir created considerable benefits. For this reason, Zuo Si praised it in “Wei Capital Rhapsody,” The drainage ditches, 12 in number, have a common source but different mouths. Their waters collect like massing clouds; they drain like a driving downpour. The wet fields are fructified with glutinous and unglutinous rice; the dry fields are planted with panicled and glutinous millet. Dark-​black are the mulberry and cudrania; sleek and shiny are the hemp and kudzu vines. Symmetrical fields have clearly drawn plots, which are dotted with rows of fences and huts. Ginger and taro abundantly flourish; peach and plums cast dark, thick shadows.182 The scene suggests a bumper harvest. Outside the city, there were projects such as Xuanwu Pond connecting the Zhang and Huan Rivers. This pond not only regulated water flow for irrigation and urban drinking water, but also improved the local ecological environment where there were a great diversity of aquatic fauna. In the Cao-​Wei, a yellow dragon (黄龙) was often spotted in the Zhang River or around the Ye city. This animal was a rare species. The inner water conservancy projects mainly included water supply and sewage systems. Cao Cao dug Changming Channel, diverting the Zhang River past Bronze Bird Terrace to enter West Garden. As a result, the channel turned into two channels and went south, moved east along the Dongxi Boulevard, passed by Zhiche Gate (止车门), and flowed into North Palace (北宫), encircling the Hall of Literary Prosperity from south and north. Then each channel became many branches rushing into West Garden, Harem, and various government offices before converging at Shidou Weir east of the Palace City. Flowing out of the city, the Huang River (湟水) connected inner

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  115 and outer water conservancy works, greatly facilitating urban water drinking, greening, irrigation, and sewage. Changming Channel sprawled along streets and through buildings, thus blending water supply and sewage with water transport, which seems quite scientific. The “Wei Capital Rhapsody” says, Inside the city streets and crossroads converge like wheel spokes; vermilion watchtowers are attached to the corners. Stone bridges and soaring spans lead out over the Zhang Canal. They have dredged conduit ditches to flank the roads; planted rows of green pagoda trees to shade the avenues.183 Water conservancy works, traffic facilities, green areas, and various buildings formed a pleasant living environment for ancient people. Cao Cao connected the city’s water conservancy works with surrounding water systems. In the ninth year of the Jian’an period, the warlord “intercepted the Qi River into the White Trench (白沟) to transport grain”184 for military purposes. The following year Cao Cao excavated two channels in preparation for attacking Wuhuan: “Pinglu Channel sprawls from the Hutuo River to the Hu River (泒水). Quanzhou Channel spreads from the estuary of the Ju River to the Lu River.”185 In the 18th year, he excavated a channel to divert the Zhang River into the Qing and Huan Rivers for grain transport. As a result, the Yellow River, Zhang River, Hutuo River, and other water systems were connected together via artificial channels, thus creating a multidirectional water transport system. No matter where you go—​from the southwest of Ye to Luoyang, from the southeast of Ye to Pengcheng (now Xuzhou, Jiangsu province), or from the northeast of Ye to Nanpi (now northeast of Nanpi county, Hebei province)—​water travel is available. Cao Pi and his men of letters left the Qing River for Nanpi countless times. In the Western Jin epoch, general Sima Ying (司马颖) guarding the Ye city transported Hebei’s grain to Pengcheng to save the disaster-​stricken people. In brief, these works played a key role in the development and prosperity of Ye. Along the main road between Ye and surrounding major towns are scattered a great number of temporary palaces such as Nanpi Palace, and Mengjin Palace. Nanpi Palace leads to a northeast road; Cao Pi mentioned the second palace in “Poem of Mengjin (孟津诗),” Next day our troops will cross the Yellow River and return to the Ye capital triumphantly.186 This quote indicates that Mengjin was a major bridge between Ye and Luoyang. Cao Pi mentioned Hanlingshan Palace in another poem, I left Ye in the morning and rested at Hanling in the night.187

116  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system Hanling Mountain (韩陵山) south of Ye was a crucial place from Ye to Xu, Luoyang, or Guanzhong. Also, it seems that White Horse Ford had a temporary palace. The Ye city of the Cao-​Wei dynasty was only a state capital, but it seemed almost no different from an imperial capital. Though based on Yuan Shao’s former city, it was far beyond the specifications for the mansion of any marquis or king. Ye of Later Zhao basically continued the layout of the city of Cao-​Wei. By combining historical texts and archaeological sources, we can conclude that the city walls roughly take the form of a rectangle (east–​west length, south–​north width), with southern, northern, and eastern sides being straight lines and half the southern section of the west city wall protruding and twisting slightly along with the terrain. As the northwestern terrain is high, Cao Cao built a city, excavated Xuanwu Pond northwest outside the city, erected three terraces using the excavated earth for city defense, water troops training, environmental protection, and sightseeing. Also, he built high towers to sharpen the overall look of the city buildings. The entire city was divided into two halves by the Dongxi Boulevard, with the northern half being a bit larger than the southern half. From west to east, West Garden, Outer Court, Inner Court, and Noble Quarter were scattered. Lying in the center of the northern half, Outer Court with Hall of Literary Prosperity at its center, extended south along Zhangmennei Street, forming the central axis of the entire city. The southern half consisted of quarter market, county, and commandery government offices, and residential areas for common people. There were eight main arteries spreading from south to north across the city: three went out from the north city wall to Dongxi Boulevard, and five were located perpendicular to Dongxi Boulevard. There were quarters and lanes between the five streets, forming a checkerboard-​shaped layout. In terms of urban planning, Ye capital of Cao-​Wei is different from either Chang’an of the Western Han epoch or Luoyang of the Eastern Han epoch. First, the halls of the palace complex were densely distributed in the center of the north. Though archaeologists did not dig the relic site of the palace walls, the palace city has already taken shape, initially judging from its location and layout. He built the government offices and storied palaces, initiating an architectural system of the imperial city for later emperors. Limited by geographical conditions and the urban territory, the Inner Court and Outer Court stood in parallel, which seems dissimilar to that of the Han dynasty or that of the Sui and Tang dynasties. It represents a transition in the evolution of traditional Chinese city layout. The concentric layout, consisting of Palace City, Imperial City, and Bailey, hadn’t taken shape until Daxing city was built in the Sui dynasty. The Hall of Literary Prosperity was the centerpiece of the Grand Court. In other words, all the buildings of the capital were located around the hall: West Garden was on the west; Trenched Pond (沟池) on the north; and gates, towers, and halls on the south and east. Cao Zhi praised Ye’s palace complex in “Rhapsody of Ascent to the Terrace,”

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  117 It represents measurement of heaven and earth and vies for brightness with the sun and moon. This quote tells us that the palace complex’s design embodies the philosophy of heaven and earth, sun and moon, yin and yang, which attaches greater importance to east and west directions, unlike the south representing yang and north representing yin that emerged later. Basically, this practice demonstrates that the Ye capital system marked a transition from the pre-​Qin era’s “West Superiority” to the Sui and Tang dynasties’ “North First.” The south–​north central axis is a clear-​cut feature of the Ye capital of Cao-​Wei. This axis starts from the north city wall, moves south past Hall of Literary Prosperity, Duan Gate, Zhiche Gate, Changhe Gate, Zhangmennei Street, and Zhang Gate before going further north. Streets, lanes, official mansions, and private houses were distributed mainly symmetrically around the axis as a whole, which looks dissimilar to the Chang’an or Luoyang of the Eastern and Western Han epochs. Zuo Si said in Wei Capital Rhapsody that the city has five quarters: Noble Quarter, Changshou Quarter, Jiyang Quarter, Yongping Quarter, and Sizhong Quarter. The rhapsody indicates that in each li there were lanes and in the lanes, there were walls, which means that there would likely be gates. The term ‘quarter (里)’ has a similar structure to the neighborhood (坊) of Daxing of the Sui dynasty or Chang’an of the Tang dynasty. So, it is safe to say that Ye’s quarter-lane (里巷) system of Cao-​Wei spawned streetside residential neighborhoods (城坊) in the Sui and Tang dynasties. The Ye Market was located in an ordinary quarter, south of the Palace City. “Wei Capital Rhapsody” depicts the market as enclosed by walls on all four sides and consisting of buildings like flag-​topped pavilions, taverns, and shops. In brief, the market has a layout similar to the neighborhood market of Chang’an of the Tang dynasty. Ye city’s municipal system has a far-​flung influence in this regard.

Notes 1 Nicola Di Cosmo, Military Culture in Imperial China (Harvard: Harvard University Press, 2009), 129. 2 Shou Chen, “Annals of Emperor Wudi (武帝纪),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 1. 3 Shou Chen, Fuzi (傅子), quoted in Pei Songzhi’s (裴松之) annotations to “Annals of Emperor Wudi (武帝纪),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 1. 4 Shou Chen, “Biography of Yuan Shao (袁绍传),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 6. 5 Shou Chen, “Biography of Emperor Xiandi (献帝传),” quoted in Pei Songzhi’s (裴松之) annotations to “Biography of Yuan Shao (袁绍传),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 6. 6 Shou Chen, “Biography of Yuan Shao (袁绍传),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 6.

118  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system 7 Shou Chen, “Biography of Xin Pi (辛毗传),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 25. 8 Qinli Lu, (逯钦立) ed, “Miscellaneous Songs of Wei (魏鼓吹曲辞),” Poems of the Pre-​Qin, Han, Wei, Jin, and the Northern and Southern Dynasties: Wei (先秦汉魏晋南北朝诗·魏诗) (Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company 中华书局, 1983) vol 11. 9 Shou Chen, “Annals of Emperor Wudi (武帝纪),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 1. 10 Guowei Wang, “Turbid Zhang River (浊漳水),” The Collation of The Commentary on the Waterway Classic (水经注校) (Shanghai: Shanghai People’s Publishing House 上海人民出版社, 1984) vol 10. 11 Changming Channel (长明沟) is also written as 长鸣沟; in 1989, archaeologists excavated a square pit between Golden Phoenix Terrace (金凤台) and Bronze Bird Terrace (铜雀台), but found no trace of the trench site. 12 Legge James, The Book of Rites (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1885), 283–​289; however, the words “city and suburban walls” in Legge’s translation are replaced by “a city and its bailey” and the word “rear” is changed into “build.” 13 Since 1 Jin chi equals 24.2 cm (24.5 cm at most) according to the extant object and six Jin chi is about one step (145.2 cm), one li which consists of 300 steps should be 435 m or so. 14 IA CASS and YCAT HPICR YCAT, “Preliminary Report of the Excavation of the Relic Site of North Ye City of Linzhang, Hebei Province (河北临漳邺北城遗址勘探发掘简报),” Archaeology (考古), 1990 (7); Guangji Xu 光冀徐, “On the Reconstruction of the Layout of Cao-​Wei Period Yecheng City (曹魏 邺城的平面复原研究),” Treatises on Chinese Archaeology: To the 40th Anniversary of the Founding of the Institute of Archaeology, CASS (中国考古学论丛—​—​ 中国社会科学院考古所建所40周年纪念) (Beijing: Science Press 科学出版社, 1993). 15 Guangji Xuand Zhijie Gu, “Preliminary Report of the Excavation of the Relic Site of North Ye City of Linzhang, Hebei Province (河北临漳邺北城遗址勘探发 掘简报),” Archaeology (考古), 1990 (7). 16 Zixin Zhang (张子欣), Records of the Archaeological Exploration of Ye City (邺城考古札记) (Beijing: China Culture and History Press 中国文史出版社, 2013), 22. 17 Jian Xu (徐坚), “Bailey, Part II (城郭第二),” Writings for Elementary Instruction (初学记) vol 24. 18 Xun Ouyang (欧阳询) et al., “Laments (哀伤),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 34. 19 Fusheng Wu and Graham Hartill, Selected Poems of the Seven Masters of the Jian’an Era (Beijing: Commercial Press, 2018), 35. 20 Fusheng Wu and Graham Hartill, op cit, (2018), 63. 21 Qinli Lu, ed, “Miscellaneous Songs of Wei (魏鼓吹曲辞),” Poems of the Pre-​ Qin, Han, Wei, Jin, and the Northern and Southern Dynasties: Wei (先秦汉魏晋南北朝诗·魏诗) vol III. 22 Xun Ouyang et al., “Roedeer (麞),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 95. 23 Sicheng Liang (梁思成), A Pictorial History of Chinese Architecture (Beijing: Shenghuo Dushu Xinzhi Sanlian Bookstore, 2011), 136; the subtitle below the sketch in the original is East-​Gate of Han-​Ku Kuan.

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  119 24 Record of the Ye City (邺中记), quoted in Na Xin’s (纳新) A Record of Visits to Antiquities of Heshuo (河朔访古记). 25 David R Knechtges, op cit, 445. 26 Cao Zhi’s (曹植) rhapsody, quoted in Pei Songzhi’s (裴松之) annotations to “Biography of Cao Zhi King Si of Chen (陈思王曹植列传),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 19. 27 Xun Ouyang et al., “Terraces (台),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 62. 28 Xun Ouyang et al., “Royal Fields (籍田),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 39. 29 Jian Xu (徐坚), “Terraces, VI (台第六),” Writings for Elementary Instruction (初学记) vol 24. 30 Guangji Xu (徐光冀) and Zhijie Gu (顾智界), “Preliminary Report of the Excavation of the Relic Site of North Ye City of Linzhang, Hebei Province (河北临漳邺北城遗址勘探发掘简报),” Archaeology (考古), 1990 (7). 31 “Wei Capital Rhapsody (魏都赋),” annotated by Liang Liu (刘良), cited in Tong Xiao (萧统, ed), Li Shan (李善) et al. (annotated), Selections of Refined Literature Annotated by Six Scholar-​ Officials (六臣注文选), (Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company 中华书局, 2012) vol 6. 32 Zixin Zhang (张子欣), loc. cit. 33 Guowei Wang (王国维), “Turbid Zhang River (浊漳水),” The Collation of the Commentary on the Waterway Classic (水经注校) (Shanghai: Shanghai People’s Publishing House 上海人民出版社, 1984) vol 10. 34 Review of Literature (文章叙录), quoted in Pei Songzhi’s (裴松之) annotations to Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 21. 35 Xun Ouyang et al., “Tours (游览),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 28. 36 David R Knechtges, op cit, 187; instead, the words “Zi gong” and “e” are changed into “Purple Tenuity” and “Celestial” respectively. 37 Tong Xiao, Selections of Refined Literature Annotated by Six Scholar-​Officials (六臣注文选) vol 2, 46; 38 Fusheng Wu and Graham Hartill, Selected Poems of the Three Caos (Beijing: Commercial Press, 2016), 177; the “ten-​thousand feet” in the original translation is replaced by “higher than 10,000 zhang.” 39 Sicheng Liang (梁思成), op cit, 136; please note that the “Liang Sicheng” and “Two-​Tiered Building (重楼) Flanked by Two Gatetowers (双阙) on the Engraved Stone” are referred to as “Liang Ssu-​ch’eng” and “Two-​Storeyed Building with Chueh” in the original. 40 David R Knechtges, op cit, 441. 41 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 471. 42 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 527. 43 Jian Xu (徐坚), “Gates, XI (门第十),” Writings for Elementary Instruction (初学记) vol 24. 44 Xun Ouyang et al., “Pagoda Trees (槐),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 88. 45 Annals of Wei (魏氏春秋), quoted in Pei Songzhi (裴松之)’s annotations to “Annals of Emperor Wudi (武帝纪),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 1. 46 Xian Cui (崔铣), “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye (邺都宫室志),” Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture (彰德府志), Jiajing period of the Ming dynasty (明·嘉靖) vol 8.

120  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system 47 Xian Cui, “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye (邺都宫室志),” Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture (彰德府志), Jiajing period of the Ming dynasty (明·嘉靖) vol 8. 48 Xian Cui, “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye (邺都宫室志), Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture (彰德府志), Jiajing period of the Ming dynasty (明·嘉靖) vol 8. 49 David R Knechtges, op cit, 441. 50 Xian Cui, “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye (邺都宫室志),” Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture (彰德府志), Jiajing period of the Ming dynasty (明·嘉靖) vol 8. 51 Zhibin Zhang and Paul U Unschuld, trans, Dictionary of the Ben Cao Gang Mu, Volume 3: Persons and Literary Sources (Berkeley CA: University of California Press, 2018), 120. 52 Fang Qiang, Chinese Complaint Systems: Natural Resistance (London: Routledge, 2013), 207. 53 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 290 and 480. 54 Xun Ouyang et al., “Gates (门),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 63. 55 Xian Cui, “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye (邺都宫室志),” Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture (彰德府志), Jiajing period of the Ming dynasty (明·嘉靖) vol 8. 56 Xun Ouyang et al., “Gates (门)”, Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 63. 57 Shou Chen, “Annals of Emperor Wudi (武帝纪),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 1. 58 David R Knechtges, op cit, 439–​441. 59 David R Knechtges, op cit, 457; instead, “Hall of Literary Splendor” is changed into “Hall of Literary Prosperity” for consistency’s sake. 60 Xun Ouyang et al., “Pagoda Trees (槐),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 88. 61 Qinli Lu (ed.), “Poems of the Pre-​Qin, Han, Wei, Jin, and the Northern and Southern Dynasties: Poem (先秦汉魏晋南北朝诗·魏诗)” (Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company 中华书局, 1983) vol III, 387. 62 Lu Zhao, In Pursuit of the Great Peace: Han Dynasty Classicism and the Making of Early Medieval Literati Culture (New York: State University of New York Press, 2019), 314. 63 Xun Ouyang et al., “Pagoda Trees (槐),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 88. 64 Xian Cui, “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye (邺都宫室志),” Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture (彰德府志), Jiajing period of the Ming dynasty (明·嘉靖) vol 8. 65 The term jun (钧) was a unit of length in ancient China and equals 30 jin (斤). 66 Shinan Yu (虞世南), Excerpts of Books in the Northern Hall (北堂书钞), (Beijing: Xueyuan Press 学苑出版社, 2015) fascicle 108, vol 2, 185. 67 Ruibin (蕤宾) refers to the seventh of twelve rhythms. 68 Shaochu Yu (俞绍初), ed, Collected Works of Wang Can (王粲集) (Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company 中华书局, 1980); this inscription, quoted in Zhang Qiao’s (章樵) annotations to Ancient Literary Circles (古文苑) Chapter 13. 69 Shaochu Yu, Excerpts of Books in the Northern Hall (北堂书钞) (Beijing: Xueyuan Press 学苑出版社, 2015), fascicle 108, vol 2, 185. 70 Robert C Provine, Yosihiko Tokumaru, and J Lawrence Witzleben, The Concise Garland Encyclopedia of World Music (London: Routledge Taylor & Franch Group, 208), 1091. A History of Chinese Entomology 71 Shaochu Yu, ed, op cit, 1980. 72 David R Knechtges, op cit, 442. “Long lanes” and “palace corridors” in the origin are replaced by “Yong Lane (永巷)” and “Hu Lane (壸术, aka 壸巷).”

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  121 73 74 75 76

David R Knechtges, op cit, 471. David R Knechtges, op cit, 395. Charles O Hucker, op cit, 396. Jian Xu, “Vegetable Gardens and Orchards (园圃),” Writings for Elementary Instruction (初学记) vol 24. 77 Jian Xu, “Pagoda Trees (槐),” Writings for Elementary Instruction (初学记) vol 88. 78 Jian Xu, “Crops (禾),”, Writings for Elementary Instruction (初学记) vol 85. 79 Jian Xu, “Laments (哀伤),” Writings for Elementary Instruction (初学记) vol 34. 80 Yao Zhou, A History of Chinese Entomology (Xi’an: Tianze Press, 1990), 38. 81 Xun Ouyang et al., “Rosemary (迷迭)”, Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 81. 82 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 412. 83 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 578. 84 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 593. 85 David R Knechtges, op cit, 443. Catalpa and Magnolia Quarter are changed into Catalpa and Magnolia Neighborhoods because quarter represents li (里) of the quarter-neighborhood (里坊) system. 86 Xian Cui, “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye (邺都宫室志),” Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture (彰德府志), Jiajing period of the Ming dynasty (明·嘉靖) vol 8. 87 Jian Xu, “Vegetable Gardens and Orchards (园圃),” Writings for Elementary Instruction (初学记) vol 24. 88 David Chai, ed, Dao Companion to Xuanxue 玄學 (Neo-​Daoism) (Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland AG, 2020, 423. 89 Xun Ouyang et al., “Ancient and Present Dwellings (总载居处),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 61. 90 David R Knechtges, op cit, 443. Catalpa and Magnolia Quarter are changed into Catalpa and Magnolia Neighborhoods because quarter represents li (里) of the quarter-neighborhood (里坊) system. 91 HNU (河北师范学院中文系古典文学教研组) (ed.), Collected Materials on the Three Caos (三曹资料汇编) (Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company 中华书局, 1980). 92 Xun Ouyang et al., “Friends (交友),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 21. 93 Jian Xu, “Mirrors (镜台),” Writings for Elementary Instruction (初学记) vol 25. 94 Jian Xu, “Caps (弁),” Writings for Elementary Instruction (初学记) vol 26. 95 Xun Ouyang et al., “Swords (剑),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 60. 96 Jian Xu, “Normative Discourses: On Poetry (典论·叙诗),” quoted in Writings for Elementary Instruction (初学记) vol 10. 97 Fang Li (李昉) et al. Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era (太平御览) vol 23. 98 Xun Ouyang et al., “Lessons (鉴诫)”, Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 23. 99 Fusheng Wu and Graham Hartill, op cit, (2018), 49; however, the last four lines are translated afresh because those lines used by the two translators are dissimilar to the lines collected in “Banquets (燕会),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 39. 100 Fusheng Wu and Graham Hartill, op cit, (2018), 134. 101 Xun Ouyang et al., “Banquets (燕会),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 39.

122  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system 102 Stephan Peter Bumbacher, Empowered Writing: Exorcistic and Apotropaic Rituals in Medieval China (Three Pines Press, 2012), 87. 103 Shou Chen 陈寿, “Biography of Wang Can (王粲传),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) (Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company 中华书局, 2000), 448. 104 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 468 respectively. 105 David R Knechtges, op cit, 439; it is worth mentioning that the “Altar of the Earth” is changed into “Altar of the Soil and Grain” for consistency’s sake. 106 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 468. 107 Xun Ouyang et al., “Altar of the Soil and Grain (社稷)”, Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 39. 108 Lihui Yang, Deming An, and Jessica Anderson Turner, Handbook of Chinese Mythology (Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-​CLIO, 2005), 136. 109 As its name suggests, “Ancestral Temple to the Left and Altar of the Soil and Grain to the Right (左祖右社)” means that the Ancestral Temple (宗庙/​祖庙) is located to the left and the Altar of the Soil and Grain (太社/​社稷) is located to the right. 110 When Tuoba Gui (拓跋珪), the founding emperor of Northern Wei (北魏), occupied Ye city, he summoned some officials to discuss the title of his new dynasty; Cui Xuanbo (崔玄伯) said, “The character Wei (魏) is the name of a past great state in ancient China. This character marks the start of a new dynasty and the emperor’s conformity with the Heavenly Mandate. So, this character should be the best choice.” Tuoba Gui readily accepted his advice. “Biography of Cui Xuanbo (崔玄伯传),” The Book of Wei (魏书); this quote can be crosschecked with the cultural heritage system of the Cao-​Wei dynasty. 111 Jian Xu, “Odes to the Ancestral Temple, Part IV (宗庙第四),” Writings for Elementary Instruction (初学记) vol 13. 112 Yue Miao (钺缪), Writings on History (读史存稿) (Beijing: Sanlian Bookstore 三联书店, 1963), 122–​123. 113 David R Knechtges, op cit, 445. 114 Fusheng Wu and Graham Hartill, op cit, (2016), 155. 115 Fusheng Wu and Graham Hartill, op cit, (2018), 149. 116 Fusheng Wu and Graham Hartill, op cit, (2016), 111; “Western Garden” is changed into “West Garden.” 117 Xun Ouyang et al., “Tours (游览),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 28. 118 Xun Ouyang et al., “Ponds and Pools (池),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 9. 119 Fusheng Wu and Graham Hartill, op cit, (2018), 79; instead, the term “Western Garden” is changed into “West Garden”. 120 Fusheng Wu and Graham Hartill, op cit, 81. 121 Fusheng Wu and Graham Hartill, op cit, 83. 122 Jian Xu, “Oranges (桔),” Writings for Elementary Instruction (初学记) vol 28. 123 Xun Ouyang et al., “Hollybucks (蜀葵),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 81. 124 Xun Ouyang et al., “Partings (别),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 30. 125 Xun Ouyang et al., “Tours (游览),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 28.

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  123 126 Guobin Yang (杨国斌), “Illuminating Poetry (明诗),” Dragon-​Carving and the Literary Mind (文心雕龙) (Beijing: Foreign language Teaching and Research Press 外语教学与研究出版社, 2003) I, 67. 127 HNU, Collected Materials on the Three Caos (三曹资料汇编) (Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company 中华书局, 1980), 318. 128 Xun Ouyang et al., “Tours (游览),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 28. 129 Fusheng Wu and Graham Hartill, op cit, (2016), 165. 130 Fusheng Wu and Graham Hartill, op cit, (2016), 167. 131 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 128. 132 David R Knechtges, op cit, 453; according to English grammar, it seems that the preposition “In” should be added to “The Baicang storehouse.” 133 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 232. 134 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 476. 135 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 415. 136 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 412. 137 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 453. 138 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 481. 139 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 195. 140 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 301. 141 David R Knechtges, op cit, 451; please note that “wards” is replaced by “quarters” here. 142 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 288; since the two officials are translated into the same term according to A Dictionary of Official Titles in Imperial China, “Chamberlain” is replaced by “Steward” here for the sake of differentiation. 143 Charles O Hucker, loc cit. 144 Since the English terms for Tingwei (廷尉) and Dali (大理) are both Chamberlain for Law Enforcement according to Charles O Hucker, op cit, 468; David R Knechtges’ term “Great Judge (大理)” is used here; for the “Great Judge (大理)”, please refer to David R Knechtges, op cit, 450. 145 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 469. 146 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 157. 147 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 565. 148 Richard B Mather, A New Account of Tales of the World (Arbor: Center for Chinese Studies, University of Michigan, 2017), 313. 149 Fusheng Wu and Graham Hartill, op cit, (2018), 165. 150 Xun Ouyang et al., Tales of the Customs (风俗通), quoted in “Ducks (鸭),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 91. 151 Legge James, “Greater Odes of the Kingdom,” The Book of Poetry (London: Trübner & Co, 1871), part 2, 503. 152 Shou Chen, “Biography of Gaotang Long (高堂隆传),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 25. 153 Xun Ouyang et al., “Gatetowers (阙),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 62. 154 IA CASS and YCAT HPCHI, “Preliminary Report of the Excavation of the Relic Site of North Ye City of Linzhang, Hebei Province (河北临漳邺北城遗址勘探发掘简报),” Archaeology (考古), 7 (1990). 155 David R Knechtges, op cit, 451. 156 David R Knechtges, loc Cit; however, “wards” is replaced by “quarters.”

124  Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system 1 57 158 159 160

Charles O Hucker, op cit, 540. Fusheng Wu and Graham Hartill, op cit, (2018), 35. Fusheng Wu and Graham Hartill, op cit, (2018), 55. David R Knechtges, op cit, 451–​453; the term “flag pavilion” is changed into “flag-​topped pavilion” for consistency’s sake and “ten thousand” in the original translation is replaced by “10,000.” 161 Zhiqin Jiao and Chun Fu, op cit, 185–​188. 162 David R Knechtges, op cit, 447. 163 Fusheng Wu and Graham Hartill, op cit, (2016), 113. 164 Xun Ouyang et al., “Wild Geese (雁),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 91. 165 Fusheng Wu and Graham Hartill, op cit, (2018), 81. 166 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 466. 167 Xian Cui, “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye (邺都宫室志),” Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture (彰德府志), Jiajing period of the Ming dynasty (明·嘉靖) vol 8. 168 Ibid. 169 Ibid. 170 Fusheng Wu and Graham Hartill, op cit, (2016), 255. 171 Xian Cui,“Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye (邺都宫室志),” Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture (彰德府志), Jiajing period of the Ming dynasty (明·嘉靖) vol 8. 172 Antje Richter, A History of Chinese Letters and Epistolary Culture (Leiden: Brill, 2015), 31. 173 Xian Cui, “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye (邺都宫室志),” Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture (彰德府志), Jiajing period of the Ming dynasty (明·嘉靖) vol 8. 174 Xun Ouyang et al., “Royal Fields (籍田),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 39. 175 Xun Ouyang et al., “Schools (学校),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 38. 176 Xun Ouyang et al., “Royal Ancestral Temples (宗庙),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 38. 177 Qian Sima, “House of Wei (魏世家),” Records of the Grand Historian (史记) vol 44. 178 Jiangyue Zhai (翟江月), Records on the Warring States Period (战国策) vol II (Guangxi: Guangxi Normal University Press 广西师大出版社, 2007), 945; instead, the “Chief Official” is replaced by “Magistrate” for consistency’s sake. 179 Qian Sima, “Biographies of Jesters (滑稽列传),” Records of the Grand Historian (史记) vol 126. 180 John Knoblock and Jeffrey Riegel, Annals of Lü Buwei (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2000), 392–​393; it is noteworthy that the term mou (亩) is changed into mu according to Chinese pinyin system. 181 Daoyuan Li, “Turbid Zhang River (浊漳水),” The Commentary on the Waterway Classic (水经注) vol 10. 182 David R Knechtges, op cit, 447. 183 David R Knechtges, op cit, 449.

Ye capital of Cao-Wei and layout system  125 184 Shou Chen, “Annals of Emperor Wudi (武帝纪),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 1. 185 Ibid. 186 Xun Ouyang et al., “Tours (游览),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 28. 187 Ibid, “Wars (战伐),” vol 59.

3  Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum Layout of the Ye Palace City

It is generally believed that Cao Cao was buried in the Ye city after his death. Since emperors’ mausoleums have the same layout as their national capitals, delving into the recently discovered Gao Mausoleum could inspire us to learn more about the palace city of Ye. By integrating ancient literature and archaeological evidence, I attempt to authenticate the identity of the mausoleum’s owner and infer the layout of the Ye palace.

I.  Authenticity of the mausoleum In December 2009, archaeologists confirmed that the Gao Mausoleum west of Anyang, Henan province should be attributed to warlord Cao Cao. But is it actually safe to conclude that? In this chapter, I will articulate my thoughts on this issue. (I)  Ancient records Gao Mausoleum was located in the western plain beside the Shrine for Ximen Bao, west of Ye city, and thus also named West Mausoleum. In fact, it is Cao Cao himself who first mentioned the mausoleum in “King’s Last Order (终令)” in the 23rd year of the Jian’an period, “Ancient people generally chose barren lands as their burial places. For instance, Shou Mausoleum is located in the western plain beside the Shrine for Ximen Bao. It simply taps into the high terrain, where no mound is made and no tree is planted.”1 In the 25th year, he wrote “The Will (遗令),” when I am dead, “my body should wear usual apparel and be buried on the West Hill of Ye, adjacent to the Shrine for Ximen Bao. By the way, no gold or jewel should be buried.” When Cao Cao really died, Cao Pi wrote “Lament for the Father King (哀策),” As the day and site of burial were determined through auguring, a passage is excavated between the entrance and the burial chamber. From this point on, Father King will spend endless nights in the deep and bleak Dark Palace (玄宫). There is no light, but only darkness.

Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum  127 Alas, such darkness will never end! The imperial parade maintains a neat array and three ministers stand in perfect order. Streamers and banners are wafting in front while evil-​dispelling god statues are wielding weapons in the rear. He bids an eternal adieu to the royal palace and sleeps in his tomb under the hill.2 Cao Zhi wrote “Eulogy of the Father King (诔),” The late King upheld frugality and had no interest in pearls or jades. … As the Lord’s body was put into the catalpa coffin, he still wore the bag-​shaped clothes (缀衣). The imperial seal was not buried along with him and merely the fu (绋) was put into the coffin. All the burial objects were simple and undecorated; even the pottery was no exception. As the hearse reached the mausoleum, the tomb gate was opened. All the officials paid homage to the late King, and his coffin was later buried in the ground. His burial chamber would be deep, dark and free of sunlight, moonlight, and starlight once the gate was shut. His coffin would lie underground forever. Even the Emperor arrived, shedding endless tears; and when the coffin was inserted into the chamber, all courtiers who stood there could not help but cry loudly.3 These two short passages depict the burial of the late king as well as the layout of the mausoleum. During the Huangchu period, the mausoleum had a burial house (陵屋) and a sacrificial hall (祭殿). When Yu Jin (于禁), a past general of Cao Cao, returned from Wu to Luoyang, Cao Pi assigned someone to paint the scene where the general was forced into surrendering when Guan Yu (关羽) flooded his troops. Besides, the incumbent emperor summoned him to “go north to pay homage to the mausoleum.”4 Yu Jin watched the painting and died of enormous shame. In the third year of the Huangchu period, Cao Pi wrote “Imperial Edict for Destruction of the Sacrificial Hall (毁高陵祭殿诏),” “The late emperor abided by thrift and ordered his sons and officials to save money. … In ancient times, there was no such thing as offering sacrifices to the tomb. Instead, ancient people paid homage to the deceased at a temple or shrine. For this reason, the burial house and sacrificial hall are

128  Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum both demolished, the horses are sent back to the manger and garments are returned to the warehouse. All these actions are in line with the order of the late emperor.” “Empress Dowager passed away on the wuzi (戊子) day of the sixth month of the fourth year of Emperor Mingdi. … She was buried nearby the Gao Mausoleum next month.”5 In the Wei dynasty, Wang Chen (王沉) compiled The Book of Wei (魏书) as ordered by Sima Yi (司马懿); Yu Huan privately wrote Sketch of Wei. In the early Jin dynasty, Chen Shou (陈寿) composed Records of the Three Kingdoms: Book of Wei. All these three books mention the mausoleum. Later in the eighth year of the Yuankang period, Lu Ji (陆机) read “The Will” at Secret Pavilion (秘阁), heaving a deep sigh, and wrote A Lament for Emperor Wudi of Wei (吊魏武帝文). In the preface to the oration, he quotes Cao Cao’s will, All my concubines and musicians … should dwell at Bronze Bird Terrace. In the main hall of the terrace, a bed of 8 chi length along with a brocade curtain ornamented with hanging tassels should be prepared and … On every 1st or 15th day of the lunar month, they should sing and dance before the bed. They should mount this terrace and gaze at my tomb from time to time. The above records indicate that the location of the mausoleum was clearly known back in the Wei and Jin dynasties. But in the Sixteen States dynasty, it was less often mentioned than previously. The Commentary on the Waterway Classic mentions the Zhang River and the Shrine for Ximen Bao, but says nothing about the grand tomb. From the Sui and Tang dynasties onwards, there were many geographic monographs. However, most of them provide just vague or ambiguous depictions. The “Ye County (邺县)” chapter of Maps and Gazetteer of the Provinces and Counties in the Yuanhe Period just reveals its rough location, “West Mausoleum of Emperor Wudi of Wei was located 30 li west of the county seat.” A Record of Visits to Antiquities of Heshuo offers some detail, “[The mausoleum], lying 30 li southwest of Yezhen village, was 270 steps around and one zhang and six chi high.” Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period also says, “[The mausoleum] was located 30 li southwest of the county seat. It was 170 steps around and one zhang and six chi high.” Obviously, these sources copy the same information repeatedly. There are a plethora of writings about the West Tomb. For instance, in the 19th year (645) of the Zhenguan period, Li Shimin composed “Oration of Emperor Taizu of Wei (魏太祖祭文)” when passing Ye during his expedition to Goryeo; as such, poets like Shen Quanqi (沈佺期) wrote poems about the tomb. These writings just express the plaintive sighs of the warlord, but do not mention anything specific relating to the tomb. In the later Northern Song epoch, the location of the mausoleum became less well known. Hence, a new story emerged and claimed that the tombs of the Northern Dynasties northwest of Ye are the 72 spurious tombs of Cao Cao. Wang Anshi (王安石) wrote a satire, Green hills roll over Zhangzhou. There is a tomb mound eight li west of Bronze Bird Terrace.

Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum  129 The tomb has been eaten away by ants and the kylin statues have been buried in the earth for many centuries. In the Jin dynasty, Xiao Bingya (萧冰崖) wrote two lines, “The warlord had hidden his resting place through tricks, which embodies his tremendous wisdom.” Ming-​dynasty poet Zhou Chaozhong (周朝中) wrote, The former city is desolate and free of cooking smoke; many spurious tombs are scattered and have become crop fields. As tales and anecdotes spread wide, the mausoleum became a historical mystery. When it comes to identification of Cao Cao’s true mausoleum, Song-​ dynasty poet Yu Yingfu (俞应符) wrote a poem, Everyone says there are 72 spurious mausoleums of Cao Cao. However, I don’t think so in this regard. And here I give an idea—​just excavate all those mausoleums and you will surely find his body in one of the mausoleums. Of course, this opinion seems too theoretical and not very practical. Na Xin “ascended Bronze Bird Terrace, watching the misty trees in the bleak outskirts of the ancient capital. A monk of Yongning Temple pointed to the direction, saying ‘That’s the location of Cao Cao’s West Mausoleum.’ ” He mistakenly regarded the tombs of the Northern Dynasties as “spurious tombs of the warlord.” “He reined in a horse, rambling through the tombs. He simply got lost and did not know where to go. Oh, you treacherous man! Had Cao Cao seen Zhuge Liang’s Eight-​Trigram Formation (八阵图), he would feel greatly ashamed.”6 In 1922, villagers dug a well in the graveyard 45 li west of Pengcheng town, discovering an ancient tomb. “The four walls of the tomb chamber are as white as newly painted. In the center of the chamber, there is a stone coffin; in front of the coffin stands a tablet claiming that the tomb owner is Cao Cao.” Deng Zhicheng (邓之诚) believed it to be the Gao Mausoleum, “More than ten stone grave chambers have been excavated over the past 50 years and none of them has a coffin. Nonetheless, this mausoleum is different because there is a coffin. So, it should be the true mausoleum of Cao Cao.”7 But in fact, it is not the mausoleum of the warlord. It seems that the location of the Gao Mausoleum is more elusive than ever. Many tales have arisen and perplexed many generations to this day. (II)  Archaeological evidence The Grand West Tomb (西高穴大墓) discovered in 2009 was identified as the mausoleum of Cao Cao based on six points: (1) The mausoleum is grand and similar to other kings’ or marquises’ tombs of the Han and Wei dynasties and the absence of mounding complies with the sentence “It simply taps into

130  Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum the high terrain, where no mound is made and no tree is planted.” (2) The unearthed artifacts, painted bricks, and other articles are characterized by the Han-​Wei style. (3) The site of the mausoleum agrees well with texts like Epitaph of Lu Qian (鲁潜墓志). (4) The simple decorations and ornaments of the tomb correspond to “The Will” of Cao Cao and those burial objects could well be the late king’s daily items. (5) The stone tablet and pillow inscribed with characters “King Wu of Wei (魏武王)” indicate clearly the identity of the deceased. (6) The male remains are identified as belonging to a man of about 60 years old and this roughly coincides with Cao Cao’s death age of 66. These proofs are fairly reliable, but still far from watertight. Two stone tablets “Tiger-​subduing Halberd of King Wu of Wei (魏武王常所用格虎 大戟)” and “Tiger-​subduing Broadsword of King Wu of Wei (魏武王常所 用格虎大刀)” were unearthed at the tomb. They should have been used every day when the man was alive. Though the tablets were scattered around after the plundering of the tomb, neither their environment nor position had changed greatly. For this reason, the tablets should be regarded as first-​hand evidence. Cao Cao was known as “Sagacious Lord (明府)” and “Sagacious Sovereign (明后)” and titled “King of Wei” while alive and titled “King Wu of Wei” posthumously. The title of “King Wu of Wei” was initiated in the second month of the 25th year of the Jian’an period and replaced by Emperor Wudi of Wei when the Han dynasty abdicated the throne to the Wei in the tenth month of the same year; the year title Jian’an gave way to Huangchu accordingly. Therefore, King Wu was venerated as Emperor Wudi. It is obvious that the title “King Wu” lasted for just eight months. The tablets should have been made during those months and later buried with other relevant objects in the mausoleum. Besides, the script style of the table inscriptions is akin to that of stone inscriptions unearthed at the Ye site of the Cao-​Wei dynasty. “Neck-​Supporting Stone of King Wu of Wei (魏武王常所用慰项石)” and Epitaph of Lu Qian of Later Zhao were collected from elsewhere. In other words, they have been relocated from their original locations. Understandably, unknown changes may have occurred during the relocation process and thus there is good reason to suspect the reliability of the evidence chain. But it has to be admitted that these two objects can be crosschecked with those unearthed at the mausoleum and should be considered as second-​hand evidence. The writing and script styles of “Neck-​Supporting Stone of King Wu of Wei” seem similar to the unearthed tablets mentioned above; Epitaph of Lu Qian says that Lu Qian died on the 21st day of the ninth month of the 12th year (345) of the Jianwu period of Later Zhao and “his tomb is located 1,420 steps west of Gaojue Bridge (高决桥) and 170 steps north of the west–​east path in the farm land. So, the mausoleum of Emperor Wudi of Wei should be 43 steps west of the northwest corner of this tomb.” Since the epitaph was discovered within the mixed earth of Xigaoxue village and the location of Lu Qian’s tomb was indefinite, there is not enough evidence to conclude that the ancient tomb at Xigaoxue village belongs to Cao Cao. As a rule, all tombs of this period follow the same ritual regulation and thus seem similar

Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum  131 in some respects. Of course, it is reasonable to infer the dating of the ancient tomb from other king tombs or marquis tombs of the Eastern Han epoch. But considering the unclear dating of the unearthed tablet inscriptions, the archaeological materials can only serve as collateral evidence. Using such materials can help strengthen the argumentation of the conclusion, but there is still a certain amount of guesswork. The ancient tomb at the village is simple and less decorated, which agrees with Cao Cao’s emphasis on frugal burial. The relevant expressions “my body should wear usual apparel,” “he still wore the bag-​shaped clothes,” and “The imperial seal was not buried along with him and merely the fu (绋) was put into the coffin. All the burial objects were simple and undecorated; even those potteries were no exception” can be crosschecked with the style of the ancient tomb. However, “misty trees of the West Mausoleum” and landmark buildings recorded in many texts disagree with “It simply taps into the high terrain, where no mound is made and no tombstone is erected,” the usual interpretation of the words, “因高为墓，不封不树.” But alternatively, the words 不树 can be interpreted as “no gravestone is erected.” Is there really no jewel or gemstone, or have the treasures already been stolen? Since the ancient tomb had been plundered many times, it is difficult to ascertain which version is closer to the truth. Besides, the tomb has gold, silver, jade, and other treasures. The six proofs show us that the ancient tomb can likely, if not most likely, be the burial place of Cao Cao according to archaeological materials of the Ye site. Despite that, there are a number of suspicions and loopholes. In this case, we cannot definitely conclude that it is the mausoleum of Cao Cao, which means that more evidence needs to be provided by conducting further studies. (III)  Other Evidence 1) The mausoleum is the graveyard of Cao Cao and his wife Madame Bian. This woman passed away a decade after his death and was buried in his mausoleum. Both “Annals of Emperor Mingdi (明帝纪)” and “Biographies of Empresses and Concubines (后妃传)” of Records of the Three Kingdoms claim that the imperial couple were buried in the same tomb. The Grand West Tomb has three skeletons: First, the man is about 60 years old. Second, one of the two women is in her 20s and the other in her 40s. Neither woman coincides with Madame Bian in terms of age. It is known that Madame Bian was born on the jisi (己巳) day of the 12th month of the third year (AD 160) of the Yanxi period of the Eastern Han and died at the age of 71 in the fifth month of the fourth year (A D 230) of the Taihe period of Wei. A new question then arises—​who are those two women? Cao Cao had two wives surnamed Ding and Liu. Liu died quite early; Ding was displaced in the early Jian’an period and buried south of Xuchang. Both of them died ahead of Cao Cao and the remains of the two females might be attributed to them. The younger woman should be Liu and the older woman should be Ding. Though Ding was

132  Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum displaced, Cao Cao still adored her. This means her body might be removed to the Gao Mausoleum after Cao Cao’s death. In addition, the warlord had Ladies Huan, Du, Qin, and Yin, Second Rank Concubine (昭仪) Wang, Concubines Sun, Li, Zhou, Liu, Zong, and Zhao. The two women may also be among them. The death years of those ladies and concubines are unclear because Cao Cao upheld frugal and simple burial and unlikely assented to the burial alive of such women. Madame Bian passed away as the Empress Dowager of Wei. Her supreme identity and feelings towards Cao Cao indicate that another tomb would have been made beside the Gao Mausoleum. There is another tomb beside the Grand West Tomb. As long as the other tomb is confirmed as the grave of Bian, this tomb should be none other than the mausoleum of Cao Cao. 2) “The Will” puts it clearly, “Rites of Zhou says Tomb Supervisor (冢人) takes charge of the graveyard. Marquises’ tombs should be located left or right in front of the imperial mausoleum, while minister or official tombs should be located in the rear side. As the Han regulation says, these tombs are called accompanying tombs (陪陵). Those meritorious ministers, courtiers, and generals could be buried along with the emperor’s mausoleum to extend the territory of the mausoleum so that the graveyard can contain the mausoleum and all the tombs.” It is therefore obvious that the Gao Mausoleum is not a single tomb, but a cluster of tombs. If those accompanying tombs are discovered, the authenticity of the Gao Mausoleum can be identified undoubtedly. Chaoyang Mausoleum (朝阳陵) of Empress Zhen titled Wenzhao (文昭甄皇后) and the Mausoleum of Cao Huan (曹奂墓) are both located in Ye and thus their locations should be relative to that of Gao Mausoleum. Xiahou Dun, Wang Can, Chen Lin, Ying Chang, and Liu Zhen among others were mostly buried to the west of Ye. Dukes and marquises of Wei and Jin, and Later Zhao dynasties were also laid to rest west or southwest of Ye or around Yemagang (野马岗) south of the Zhang River. Tombs of the Northern Dynasties are mainly distributed on the northern bank of the Zhang River northwest of Ye. Indeed, Gao Mausoleum has its territory. 3) The direction of the ancient tomb coincides with Cao Cao’s “Will.” From a geomantic point of view, the tomb stands on a tableland against the Mount Qingliang, facing east towards Bronze Bird Terrace. This direction means that the late emperor could lie there watching his singers and concubines performing and receiving the allegiance of his sons and courtiers. As the sun rises in the east, this direction agrees well with traditional Chinese fengshui. The mausoleums of Empress Zhen and Cao Huan should be located in similar fashion. 4) The deceased in the tomb has a similar age to Cao Cao. The remains can be sampled and compared with his kin via DNA techniques. In June 1951, Pingyuan Provincial Cultural Heritage Administrative Committee (平原省文 物管理委员会) excavated the tomb of Cao Zhi at Dong’e (东阿). Some bones unearthed therein were moved to Xinxiang, the capital of Pingyuan province and fell into oblivion from then on. If the remains are found, a DNA sample

Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum  133 could be obtained and compared with that of the remains of the Grand West Tomb. If the results are compatible, it means the West Tomb is actually the mausoleum of Cao Cao. 5) Both “The Last Order” and “The Will” mention the Shrine for Ximen Bao. Since the mausoleum lies west of the shrine, obtaining the location of the shrine can help infer the rough location of the mausoleum. Indeed, there is such a shrine in Wei, Jin, Northern Dynasties like Later Zhao and Former Yan, Tang, Song, Ming, or Qing dynasty. However, this shrine had gone through vicissitudes, and its location had changed many times. Besides, there is more than one shrine or temple in this regard. For example, in the Ming dynasty, Anyang county had a Temple of Magistrate Ximen. This temple was built at Dafu village during the Tianbao period of Northern Qi. At the same time, Linzhang county had a temple of the same name. “[This temple] lay at Renshouli (仁寿里) 25 li away from the county seat.” In the eighth year of the Yuanyou period, the temple was reconstructed.8 Which was the Shrine of Ximen Bao back in the Wei and Jin dynasties? It still requires further investigation. Overall, the grand tomb may likely be the mausoleum of Cao Cao.

II.  Location, direction and type of the mausoleum Can the Grand West Tomb be identified as Cao Cao’s Mausoleum? This view is not completely watertight, but really difficult to disprove. For now it is temporarily assumed that the mausoleum belongs to Cao Cao. With this idea in mind, I will compare the location, direction, and type of the mausoleum recorded in previous texts with the data of the Grand West Tomb. (I)  Origin of the Gao Mausoleum Basically, all texts locate the Gao Mausoleum with reference to Ye city or the Shrine for Ximen Bao. If Ye city serves as the origin, the mausoleum should be located on the hill west of the city or located southwest of the city. The Ye site still has Golden Phoenix Terrace and a corner of Bronze Bird Terrace. The foundation of the city has long been buried underground due to the water washing of the Zhang River, but its contour layout has been clarified through archaeological excavation. The shrine was located northwest of Ye city and a plain simply lies west of the shrine. In his last years, Cao Cao made “The Last Order,” “The western plain beside the Shrine of Ximen Bao should be chosen as the site of my mausoleum.” Likewise, “The Will” says that “my body should wear usual apparel and be buried on the West Hill of Ye, adjacent to the Shrine for Ximen Bao.”9 The mausoleum should be located west or northwest of Ye city and close to the Shrine for Ximen Bao. More clearly put, it should lie on the west hill or on the west plain beside the shrine. The Grand West Tomb does indeed lie on the west hill northwest of Ye city, where there is an open tableland. The ground surface of this land is ten-​odd meter higher

134  Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum than the flat land three km away to the east. This corresponds with Cao Cao’s words “It simply taps into the high terrain” in “The Will.” How far was the mausoleum from Ye city? There is no relevant record in Wei and Jin dynasty literature. However, Tang dynasty texts provide more detail about its location. The “Ye county (邺县)” chapter in volume 16 of Maps and Gazetteer of the Provinces and Counties in the Yuanhe Period says, “The past Ye city is located 50 steps east of the county seat, the Shrine for Ximen Bao stands 15 li west of the county seat and the West Mausoleum of Cao Cao lies 30 li west of the county seat.” In the Tang dynasty, Ye county lay outside the west wall of the former Ye city and “40 li” southwest of Xiangzhou (now called Anyang). This county was established by Emperor Yangdi (炀帝) of Sui dynasty. The “Geographical Record” chapter of Old Book of Tang says, “In the early years of his reign, Emperor Yangdi set up Ye county at Daci Temple of the old Ye city. The present-​day small county seat was established in the eighth year of the Zhenguan period.” The “small county seat” had been intact till the Five Dynasties, when Liu Xu (刘煦), a scholar of Later Tang of the Five Dynasties, wrote Old Book of Tang. The “Geographical Record” chapter of History of Song says that in the fifth year (1072) of the Xining period, Ye county was reduced to a town. From the Tang to the Song dynasty, the county/​town had been located outside the west city wall of the Ye site, namely southwest of the present-​day Yezhen village, Linzhang county, Hebei province. The village was relocated slightly northwest in the Yuan and Ming dynasties and is now about 30 li west of Xigaoxue village. Song and Yuan dynasty literature also includes records of the mausoleum of Cao Cao. Na Xin, for example, mentioned in A Record of Visits to Antiquities of Heshuo that the mausoleum “lay 30 li southwest of Yezhen village.” The “Geographical Record” chapter in volume 2 of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period claims that it “nestled 30 li southwest of the county seat.” After the Song and Yuan dynasties, the exact location of the mausoleum became more vague and the words “30 li southwest (西南三十里)” seemed to be a mere assumption based on previous records. Yezhen village mentioned in A Record of Visits to Antiquities of Heshuo is located northwest of the present-​day Yezhen village and two li west of Santai village. As a matter of fact, Na Xin did not know the real location of the mausoleum. This explains why he still rode his horse wandering about the tombs of the Northern Dynasties to look for Cao Cao’s tomb even though the scholar himself indicated the above location of the mausoleum. In the subtitle “Yezhen village of Linzhang county (临漳县邺镇),” Cui Xian (崔铣) said in Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture, the mausoleum “was located southwest of the county seat,” which merely copies the opinion of Gazetteer of Xiangtai Prefecture. But actually, the words “southwest of the county seat” should be “southwest of the town.” In the Ming dynasty, the mausoleum should be about 70 li southwest of the Linzhang county seat. Historically speaking, it is west of the Ye county seat of the Tang dynasty and northwest of the Ye city of Wei and Jin dynasties. Go west 30 li from the present Yezhen

Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum  135 village, and go southwest more than 30 li from the Three Terraces site. The intersection of these routes should be situated around Xigaoxue village. In 1998, a villager dug out an inscribed stone of Lu Qian’s tomb 0.5 km northwest of Xigaoxue village. This stone epitaph indicates, “Lu Qian’s tomb is 1,420 steps west of the path along Gaojue Bridge and 170 steps away from the southern path. Therefore, if anyone walks west 43 steps from the northwest of Gao Mausoleum and turn north before walking 250 steps, he will see the Open Space (明堂)10 before Lu Qian’s tomb.” The site where the stone was unearthed should be the location of the so-​called Open Space. The characters “gao jue (高决)” are pronounced similarly to gaoxue (mausoleum or grand tomb 高穴) because jue (决) and xue (穴) were interchangeable characters in classical Chinese. Gazetteer of Xiangtai Prefecture mentions that there were Donggaoxue (东高穴) and Xigaoxue (西高穴) villages in Anyang county.11 It seems that this phonetic transition occurred in the Tang and Song dynasties. Gaojue Bridge was one of the bridges over the 12 channels of the Zhang River, which turn out to be the traditional water conservancy project of Ye city. As a result, the channel water should flow southeast past the bridge and Gao Mausoleum. In other words, the bridge was situated on the passage between the water and the mausoleum. Today rural people in southern Hebei and northern Henan still dub the tomb or mausoleum as xue. The words “Grand Tomb (高墓 or 高穴)” and “Gao Mausoleum (高陵)” have the same meaning. The two villages emerged east and west of the bridge back in the Tang and Song dynasties. The stone inscription mentions that this bridge, Cao Cao’s Mausoleum, and the Open Space of Lu Qian’s Tomb form a triangle. The mausoleum should be located southwest of the bridge, and the Open Space should be located northwest of it, which basically coincides with the archaeological discovery. History shows that Gao Mausoleum is about 30 li west or southwest of Ye city; therefore, its exact location can be determined as being around the Xigaoxue village. Moreover, the stone inscription says that the mausoleum was located southwest of the bridge. It is concluded that the mausoleum should be situated more than 250 steps or so south of the site of the inscribed stone. Crosschecking the literature with the archaeological evidence tells us that the Grand West Tomb should likely be the mausoleum of Cao Cao. Epitaph of Lu Qian was created in the 11th year (345) of the Jianwu period of Later Zhao, 80 years after the demise of the Cao-​Wei regime and 29 years after the fall of the Western Jin epoch. Considering that the period of time is less than 100 years, the record of this epitaph should be reliable. Moreover, the epitaph mentions the northwest corner of the mausoleum of Cao Cao, which means that there was an artificial mound on the ground. The sources used in compiling Maps and Gazetteer of the Provinces and Counties in the Yuanhe Period should be illustrated records or gazetteers of Xiangzhou or Ye county. These materials seem to be fairly authentic as they were written by well-​informed local officials and gentry. Maps and Gazetteer of the Provinces and Counties in the Yuanhe Period was authored by Li Jifu (李吉甫), a native

136  Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum of Zanhuang (赞皇), Hebei province. It is therefore presumed that the author should know well the geography of the prefecture, and his record of the location of Gao Mausoleum should be accurate. In terms of locating the mausoleum, there is another major reference—​the Shrine for Ximen Bao. The plain west of the shrine is where the mausoleum is located. But where was the shrine located back in the Han and Wei dynasties? History tells us that the shrine was located west of the Ye city and south of the Zhang River. It is unfortunate that the exact location was never indicated. The “Turbid Zhang River” chapter in The Commentary on the Waterway Classic says, The Zhang River flows east past south of Wucheng. … East of the shrine stands a stele featuring characters. A stone column at the easternmost side of the shrine is inscribed with the words “Built in the Jianwu period of Zhao.” … The Zhang River then leaves the shrine by the north to the west of Horse-​Reviewing Terrace (阅马台) of Zhao. Again the river runs north and past Purple Path on the west. It is obvious that the shrine Li Daoyuan saw had been built during the Jianwu period of Later Zhao, which means the shrine declined in the late Western Jin epoch and was reconstructed based on the shrine of the Wei and Jin dynasties. The site of Wucheng mentioned above remains intact about 9 li west of the Three Terraces site. Judging from the above quotation, the shrine facing the Zhang River on the north should be located southeast of the present-​day site of Wucheng and southwest of the Ye city. There is an east–​west path separating the shrine (south) and the Zhang River (north). The terrace should be located to the north of Dongxi Boulevard and Purple Path should be situated 5 li northwest of Ye city. This means that the geographical monograph reflects that the shrine underwent no change of location from the Eastern Han epoch through the Northern Wei dynasty. In the Wei, Jin, and Later Zhao dynasties, the Zhang River and the Shrine for Ximen Bao were usual haunts of senior officials and nobles. The “Record of Fu Jian (符坚载记)” of The Book of Jin (晋书) says, His grandfather Fu Hong (符洪) moved to Ye following Shi Jilong (Jilong 季龙, the style name of Shi Hu) and settled in Yonggui Quarter (永贵里). His mother, surnamed Gou, constantly toured the Zhang River and worshiped the Shrine for Ximen Bao to ask for a baby. That night she dreamed of having sex with the deity of the shrine and got pregnant. In the 12th month, Fu Jian was born. The traffic route of the western suburbs of Ye city site is indicated as follows: First, leave the West Gate (西门), namely Jinming Gate of Ye city site. Second, go west along the southern bank of Xuanwu Mere. Third, then the route falls into two branches: One spreads northwest to Purple Path and

Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum  137 crosses the Zhang River and turns north. The other extends southwest to the shrine, meanders further west up to the western plain where the mausoleum was located. During her excursion, Lady Gou visited the shrine along the first branch route and returned to the city along the east–​west path. It can be deduced then that the shrine was located southwest of Ye city, and Gao Mausoleum lay west of the shrine. In the late Northern Wei, the shrine seems to have been dilapidated, as “Inscription on the Stele in the Shrine for Ximen Bao (西门豹祠堂碑)” says, “In the late years of the Northern Wei dynasty, the regime declined and various local forces revolted. … The land was deserted and the shrine got ruined.”12 This stele was erected by Gao Yue (高岳) titled King of Qinghe (清河王) and the inscription was seemingly composed by Wei Shou (魏收). The incomplete inscription indicates that the shrine should be reconstructed at the site of the shrine of Northern Wei in the same year. The inscription written in the fifth year of the Tianbao period says, “The front side of the stele is 6.8 chi high, and 4.9 chi wide, being inscribed with a writing of 1,276 characters in 29 lines in clerical script and a title of five characters ‘Ode to Ximen Bao (西门君之颂)’ in seal script.”13 The front-​side inscription depicts the chaotic years due to wars in the late Northern Wei, the great deeds of Ximen Bao, and the merits of Gao Huan and his son; the inscription on the rear side features the autographs of Gao Yue, Governor of Sizhou and Section Clerks (曹掾).14 This stele was recorded in later Song and Ming dynasty texts. For instance, Gazetteer of the World During the Taiping Period says, “In the fifth year of the Tianbao period, Vice Director Wei Shou erected a stele at Ximen Bridge (西门桥), Ye county. Now the stele is still in good condition.” This is the “Stele in the Shrine for Ximen Bao” instead of the stele at the bridge. The “Record of Shrine Sacrifices (祠祀志)” in volume 4 of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period gives an account of the temple, It is located at Dafu village and its construction dates back to the Tianbao period of Northern Qi. In the seventh year of the Hongzhi period, Assistant Censor-​in-​Chief (巡抚都御使)15 Xu Ke (徐恪) ordered some official to make Shi Qi another object of worship apart from Ximen Bao, and Feng Zhong (冯忠) renamed the shrine as Shrine of Two Worthies of Ye (邺二大夫祠). This quotation does not mention that the stele made in the fifth year of the Tianbao period, but clearly records that the temple for Ximen Bao was located at Dafu village north of the prefectural seat (now Anyang). The stele made in the fifth year of the Tianbao period had stood within the temple at Fenglezhen, Anyang up to the Qing dynasty. As the date became unknown due to incompleteness of the inscription, county magistrate Mr Peng moved the stele to the City God Temple (城隍庙) of Anyang. This stele attests the fact that the location of the shrine had never changed from the Northern Qi through the Qing and that the shrine in Wei and Jin was the archetype of the

138  Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum shrines in Later Zhao and Northern Wei. The stone column of Later Zhao, The Commentary on the Waterway Classic, “Stele in the Shrine for Ximen Bao” in the fifth year of the Tianbao period of Northern Qi, Gazetteer of the World During the Taiping Period, Comprehensive Gazetteer of the Great Ming, Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture, Bronze and Stone Seals, Inscriptions, and Other Materials provide a full chain of evidence for the unchanging location of the shrine, though it underwent many vicissitudes. However, ancient texts indicate that there are two different versions of the location of the shrine: Dafu village and east of Fenglezhen village. The natural village16 called “Dafu” appeared before the Northern Song epoch and possibly got its name from a shrine or temple for Ximen Bao titled Grand Master (大夫).17 The village took form after the completion of the temple and thrived because of the temple. The village name was first seen in Gazetteer of Xiangtai Prefecture; Fenglezhen village first emerged in the Jin dynasty. For this reason, pre-​Ming texts usually mention the Dafu village, and Qing texts mostly argue that the shrine was located at Fenglezhen village. Fenglezhen village was situated on a south–​north path about 0.75 km northwest of Dafu village. There was a ferry on the Zhang river north of the village. Thanks to its superb location, Fenglezhen village had developed into a large rural community. It follows that after the Qing dynasty, Fenglezhen was often referred to as the location of the shrine. In fact, the two villages point to the same location. The shrine relic site lies 1 km or so south of Zhanghe Bridge, east of the present-​day Fenglezhen (north of Dafu village), between the No. 107 National Highway and the Jinguang Railway. To this day the relic site still has four steles of the Song, Ming, and Qing dynasties and the Republic period. The Stele for the Shrine of Ximen Bao erected in the fifth year of the Tianbao period of Northern Qi originally stood there. However, the shrine was destroyed in the war in 1924 and its remaining site is located there to this day. A hilly plain spreads west of the shrine. In clearer terms, the shrine was perched on the previous eastern tip of the western plain. It is a pity that the tip has given place to a flat land. Gazetteer of the World During the Taiping Period also says, “Illustrated Book of Sui Dynasty (隋图经) tells us, the Shrine for Ximen Bao stood seven li southeast of the Ye county seat, overlooking the northern Taiping Channel (太平渠).” This shrine was first built at the site in the Sui dynasty. The site is the place of the later Renshou village, which gets its name from being located east of Renshou Gate of the South Ye City. The Temple for Grand Master Ximen of Dafu village originally fell within the territory of Anyang county. The Sui dynasty then established Ye county and built another shrine southeast of the county seat. Ye county was abolished and incorporated into Linzhang county in the fifth year of the Xining period of the Northern Song epoch. The “Record of Sacrifices (祭祀志)” chapter in volume 4 of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period says the Temple for Grand Master Ximen was located at Renshou village “25 li away from the Linzhang county seat. It features a record written by Yang Meng (杨蒙) during the Yuanyou period

Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum  139 of the Song dynasty.” The distance of 25 li suggests that this quote should be attributed to Gazetteer of Xiangtai Prefecture because Renshou village was located southwest 25 li of the Linzhang county seat back in the Song dynasty. Today the village still uses the name “Renshou.” A Record of Visits to Antiquities of Heshuo claims, The Shrine for Ximen Bao was located on the Zhang River. The door tablet reads “Temple for Grand Master Ximen (西门大夫之庙). … Besides, there is a stele inscribed with a record, which Yang Meng, a native of Qiantang, composed in the Song dynasty.” In the 12th month, I visited the shrine, worshiping the worthy official and reading the stele inscription. Then I took leave of the shrine. This temple, lying northeast of South Ye City, was first built in the Sui dynasty.18 In the Song and Yuan dynasties, the Zhang River flowed past north of the Ye city, circled around the northeast corner, went south and passed by the east of Ye till the north of Renshou village (called Renshouli in ancient times), where the river turned southeast. This explains why Na Xin said the shrine was located on the Zhang river. The later-​built Shrine for Ximen Bao at Renshou village faced the Zhang River on the north, which is incompatible with the location of the shrine of the Han and Wei dynasties. Though there was more than one shrine in the past, historical texts and cultural sites and artifacts confirm that the relic site east of the present-​day Fenglezhen village refers to the shrine of the Han and Wei dynasties. The Grand West Tomb is about 7 km west of this relic site, which basically agrees with the distance of 15 li from the mausoleum of Cao Cao to the Ye city according to historical literature. The location and surrounding environment of Gao Mausoleum accord with those depictions of the Grand West Tomb. (II)  Site selection, construction, and direction of Gao Mausoleum In the 22nd year (217) of the Jian’an period, Cao Cao was titled King of Wei at the age of 63, which marked the apogee of his political career. When he considered his burial, he had been staying in Ye all this year around. In the sixth month of the year, he made “The Last Order” and determined the site of his mausoleum. In fact, he had consulted one or more augurs on this issue. The result of the auguring was later incorporated in “The Last Order,” which provides three reasons for choosing the plain west of the shrine as the site of burial: First, “Ancient people generally chose barren lands as their burial places.” Second, “It simply taps into the high terrain.” Third, “[Those meritorious ministers, courtiers, and generals could be buried around to] extend the territory of the mausoleum.” The water conservancy projects built and expanded based on Ximen Bao’s project were located there as well. From a geographical point of view, there is a mountain west of the hill. In the Northern Dynasties, it was known as Mount Tiancheng (天城山), south of the convergence of two rivers. From Jin and Yuan

140  Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum dynasties, it was renamed Mount Qingliang (清凉山). There is a temple on the mountain, which was named “Tiancheng” because the surrounding mountains look like battlements. This temple was renamed Chengshan Temple (城山寺) in Eastern Wei, Heshui Temple (合水寺) in Northern Qi, and Xiuding Temple (修定寺) in the Sui dynasty. The hill lies south of the Zhang River and west of 12 artificial channels. Before the mausoleum runs a path that directly led to Ye city, the “main base” of Cao Cao’s regime. For these reasons, the warlord chose the west hill as the site of his mausoleum. Gao Mausoleum probably commenced construction in the autumn of the 23rd year (218) of the Jian’an period. However, the full-​scale construction did not start until the next year. When Cao Cao was titled King of Wei, his power reached its zenith indeed. Even so, this lord expressed his wishes in “A Refusal to the Enfeoffment of the Emperor Xiandi of Han (让县自明本志令),”19 “I still wanted to serve the Han court the same way King Wen of Zhou served the Yin dynasty even though that the second third of the world was in my grasp.”20 Though he did not proclaim himself emperor, his sons and officials called him Lord or Your Majesty. His mausoleum should be inferior to imperial mausoleums and superior to ordinary dukes’ mausoleums, but it was actually considered to be comparable to most imperial mausoleums and overreached the given regulation. Such a grand mausoleum cannot be built overnight. Actually, it would take more than one year to build it, since the project requires a set of procedures including Mausoleum layout design, labor solicitation, material acquisition and transport, tomb passage excavation, earth digging for burial chamber, ground pavement, chamber stonework, and carving or decoration. The main body of the mausoleum was basically completed by the late 24th year of the Jian’an period. The “Annals of Emperor Wudi” chapter of Records of the Three Kingdoms quotes from The Book of Wei, Cao Cao “created a great cause” and “kept on reading all the time;” Cao Cao did not follow any rule in building palaces or making equipment, but the results satisfied his needs every time, without exception. The warlord was frugal by nature and detested flamboyant decorations. … If any curtain or screen was broken, he would mend it for later use. Even his blanket or cushion was simple and undecorated. … He often dismissed the burial ceremony and the full set of burial clothes as intricate and useless. However, common people spoke highly of such practices. Therefore, before his death, he had made burial clothes, which occupied as few as four small suitcases. The mausoleum layout was determined by Cao Cao himself. On the 23rd day of the first month of the 25th year (May 15, 220) of the Jian’an period, Cao Cao died in Luoyang and was buried in the Gao Mausoleum on the 21st day of the second month (April 11). “The Will” says, “Since the world is not yet pacified, you should not abide by the ancient ritual when dealing with my burial. As soon as the burial ceremony is completed, none of those guarding

Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum  141 soldiers should leave their post. Various officials in service should fulfil their duties.”21 Considering the simple ritual and tight schedule, there would be no time to ornament the coffin chamber elaborately. The simplicity of the Grand West Tomb agrees well with these quotations. Cao Cao’s mausoleum was to face east because he told his sons and ministers in “The Will,” All my concubines and musicians … should dwell at Bronze Bird Terrace. In the main hall of the terrace, a bed of six chi length along with a brocade curtain ornamented with hanging tassels should be prepared. On every 1st or 15th day of the lunar month, they should sing and dance before the bed. They should mount this terrace and gaze at my tomb from time to time. This arrangement means that Cao Cao felt some unforeseen accident may occur. As the leader of Wei, he feared that once he fell from power, his sons and ministers might fight for power. To avoid his sons infighting, he formulated this regulation for his burial ceremony so that his leadership would continue to be binding on his sons and ministers after his death. Even though “As the hearse reached the mausoleum, … His coffin would lie underground forever,” he would still supervise their conduct spiritually. For this reason, the Gao Mausoleum should face east towards Bronze Bird Terrace of the Ye city. Otherwise, he didn’t need to ask them to pay homage to him by performing music on the terrace and gazing at his mausoleum. As the Grand West Tomb faces east at 110°, the real intention of Cao Cao will be revealed by relating such direction to the musical sacrifice at the Bronze Bird Terrace. When Cao Cao’s body was buried, Cao Pi wrote “Lament for the Father King,” in which he said “As the day and site of burial were determined through auguring, a passage is excavated between the entrance and the burial chamber. … He bids an eternal adieu to the royal palace and sleeps in his tomb under the hill.” The coffin was moved from the Hall of Literary Prosperity to the Dark Palace of Gao Mausoleum. Two rivers converged in front of Mount Tiancheng. Lying east of this mountain, Gao Mausoleum enjoyed a panorama of the Ye city and especially Bronze Bird Terrace, which reflects the harmony between heaven, earth, and humanity. When he got a headache, Cao Cao would have his head put in water to ease the pain. Cao Cao said, “When I get a headache, I’d like to put my head into water to ease the pain. It smells odorous if water is contained in bronzeware. So, I made a small silver square utensil and thus many people mistakenly believed that I like silverware because they know nothing about why I did that. Hence, later I made another wooden utensil.”22 It is likely that this bronze, silver, or wooden utensil can promote calm, reduce heat, and relieve pain. For this reason, Cao Cao carried it every day, wherever he went. In “The Will,” he also said, “As I have a headache, you should first cover my head with a scarf. And after my death, the whole nation should wear mourning as if I were still alive. Please don’t forget these

142  Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum points.”23 He also said in “Order of Spring Sacrifice (春祠令),” “Worship the god as if he were out there.”24 Likewise, venerate the dead as if he were still alive. For this reason, Cao Cao’s mausoleum was built on the hill west of Ye considering the local terrain. By comparing the historical records with relevant archaeological evidence and the natural environment, we can conclude that Cao Cao took into serious consideration the site selection of his burial-​ place. Hence, Gao Mausoleum should face east, otherwise it will be hard to explain those questions arising from materials like “The Will.” Apart from Gao Mausoleum, the mausoleum of Empress Wenzhao, Cao Pi’s wife surnamed Zhen, lay in the land of Ye. In the second year (221) of the Huangchu period, she committed suicide upon the order of the emperor and was buried therein. In the second month of the first year of Taihe period, “A temple for the empress was erected in the land of Ye.”25 In the fourth year (230) of the Taihe period, “the previous mausoleum was considered too low, … In the 12th month, she was relocated to Chaoyang Mausoleum.”26 The “Geographical Record” chapter of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period says, “The mausoleum of Empress Zhen lay at Lingzhi villages.” To the south of Ye site, there are Donglingzhi (东灵芝) and Xilingzhi (西灵芝) villages. There is an ancient tomb sandwiched between these villages, which is said to be the mausoleum of the empress. This mausoleum should be the first mausoleum of the empress. When her body was removed to Chaoyang Mausoleum, this mausoleum remained intact as part of her temple. In the third year (1096) of the Shaosheng period of the Northern Song epoch, a local farmer discovered the empress’s stone box when cultivating the land. The box cover is inscribed with eight characters: Box of Empress Wenzhao (文昭皇后识坐版函). This turquoise box is 8.5 cun wide, 17 cun long, and about 2.83 cun deep. Its bottom takes the form of a deer and its head looks like a scepter. It is an object placed before the spiritual tablet of the empress.27 Chaoyang Mausoleum was located northeast of Ye city. Na Xin said in A Record of Visits to Antiquities of Heshuo, “Chaoyang Mausoleum lay 9 li northeast of Yezhen village, Linzhang county. It is the burial place of Wenzhao Empress, Cao Pi’s wife. … Now there is another tomb beside the mausoleum. Old people said it is the tomb of Madame Li. This Li got on well with the empress and was buried along with her.” Cao Pi had a concubine surnamed Li and this lady produced a son Cao Xie titled King Ai, who died an untimely death.28 This lady may be the Madame Li who was buried beside the empress. Chaoyang Mausoleum was situated northeast (left) of Ye city and Gao Mausoleum. Besides, Cao Chong’s tomb was possibly located nearby. Cao Yu (曹宇) had a son called Cao Huan (曹奂), whose tomb is also located in the land of Ye. As Cao Cao’s grandson, Cao Huan abdicated the throne to the Sima clan and witnessed the demise of the Wei dynasty. As a result, he was titled King Liu of Chen and moved to the Ye palace. In the first

Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum  143 year (302) of the Tai’an period of the Western Jin epoch, he died at 58 and was posthumously titled Emperor Yuandi and buried therein. The “Geographical Record” chapter of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period says, “Emperor Yuandi’s Mausoleum was located at Zhangpengcheng village (张彭城村) southwest of [Linzhang] county.” The village lies southeast (right) of Gao Mausoleum. A further analysis of the directions of Chaoyang Mausoleum and the Mausoleum of Emperor Yuandi Cao Huan shows that the two tombs are inferior to the Gao Mausoleum. According to the patriarchal burial hierarchy, the three mausoleums should form a triangle pointing in the same direction and Gao Mausoleum, the main tomb, should be located in the middle of the parallels of the lines extended southwest from the two servant tombs. Connect Chaoyang Mausoleum and Cao Huan’s tomb to form a line, find its mid-​point, draw another line, namely the diagonal line with Gao Mausoleum at the angle, extend the line southwest and you will find it also points to Xigaoxue village. So, the Gao Mausoleum should face east. In the sixth month of the seventh year (226) of the Huangchu period, Cao Pi passed away and was buried on the eastern piedmont of Shouyang Mountain, Yongji, Shanxi province. Therefore, his tomb is named Shouyang Mausoleum that “simply taps into the high terrain” and this mausoleum should face east. In 1951, archaeologists discovered that Cao Zhi’s tomb is opposite Cao Pi’s tomb. Cao Zhi was buried on the western piedmont of Mount Yu (鱼山), facing the Ye city to the west. This is because the capital of Wei should be the place where their spirits gather. Judging from the direction of Cao Zhi’s mausoleum and that of Cao Pi’s mausoleum, their father’s mausoleum faced east toward the Ye city similarly. In terms of direction and location, the east-​facing Grand West Tomb corresponds with Gao Mausoleum. This is ample proof of identification of the owner of the Grand West Tomb. (III)  Type and features of Gao Mausoleum The mausoleum has the bodies of Cao Cao and his wife Madame Bian. As the “Biographies of Empresses and Concubines (后妃传)” chapter of Records of the Three Kingdoms says, Empress Bian died in the fifth month of the fourth year (230) of the Taihe period and “was buried together with Cao Cao in the seventh month of the same year.” This quote tells us that the couple lay in the same tomb. But according to the “Annals of Emperor Mingdi” chapter of Records of the Three Kingdoms, “Empress Dowager passed away on the wuzi day of the sixth month of the fourth year of Emperor Mingdi. … She was buried nearby the Gao Mausoleum next month.” These terms “burial nearby the main tomb (祔葬)” and “burial together with the lord (合葬)” are quite different things though the two terms differ only by a single character. As a rule, annals seem more accurate than biographies because annals of official histories are collected from notes on emperors’ levees29 and acts and from

144  Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum veritable records of dynasties. So, the first version of the burial of the empress dowager should be accepted. Cao Cao died in the first month of the 25th year (220) of the Jian’an period of the Eastern Han, and Madame Bian died in the sixth month of the fourth year (230) of the Taihe period of Emperor Mingdi of Wei. There was a span of ten years between their deaths, which means that it was impossible to open Cao Cao’s mausoleum and put Madame Bian’s body into the mausoleum. Since Madame Bian died as Empress Dowager, another mausoleum comparable to Cao Cao’s mausoleum would have been constructed according to the burial ritual. Her burial nearby Cao Cao not only maintained their marital relationship, but also emphasized her identity as Empress Dowager. After Cao Cao’s death, Cao Pi made “Lament for the Father King,” in which he said, “As the day and site of burial were determined through auguring, a passage is excavated between the entrance and the burial chamber.” Cao Zhi wrote “Eulogy of Empress Dowager Bian (卞太后诔),” Things may remain the same, but the empress dowager is gone. Such tremendous pain is beyond acceptance and I want to ask the heaven why. Her spirit will return to Ye and wander around the city. A large tu is excavated and the dead spirit would still tremble. I heave a blizzard of sighs and shed a rain of tears. Her coffin lingers about and I cry hard, only to find mother is beyond my reach. Having no chance to see her again, I stand still, endless tears flowing down my cheeks.30 “A large tu (涂) is excavated and the dead spirit would still tremble.” The character tu (涂) should be viewed as its homonym 途, which refers to a west–​east road. These quotes imply that another passage was excavated for the tomb of Madame Bian and that she was buried in the tomb on the bottom left side of Cao Cao’s mausoleum. An Empress Dowager should be buried in a separate mausoleum with a great number of utensils. This layout seems similar to the distribution of the two mausoleums in parallel, as discovered in the archaeological investigation. However, the Grand West Tomb has three skeletons, one of whom is a man about 60 years old in the front and the others are two women, one about 50 years old (at first inaccurately identified as 40 years old) and one 20 years old, in the rear. The age of the man largely fits in with the death age (66) of Cao Cao, but neither female skeleton is compatible with Madame Bian in terms of death age. Pei Songzhi quoted from The Book of Wei when annotating the “Biographies of Empresses and Concubines” of Records of the Three Kingdoms, “Empress [Bian] was born in Baiting (白亭), Qi commandery (齐郡) on the jisi (己巳) day of the 12th month of the third year of the Yanxi period of the Han dynasty.” However, the 12th month of that year has no such day and thus it should be a yisi (乙巳) day, namely the 15th day of the 12th month (January 29, 161). “Empress Dowager passed away on the wuzi day of the sixth month of the fourth year of Emperor Mingdi.” The wuzi day

Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum  145 is the 11th day of the sixth month (July 9, 230). Obviously, the dowager died at the age of 70 and thus neither skeleton could possibly belong to her. The death ages of the two skeletons are similar to the data for Ladies Ding and Liu; the former, Cao Cao’s first wife, was dismissed in the fourth or fifth year of the Jian’an period. Pei Songzhi quoted from Sketch of Wei when annotating the “Biographies of Empresses and Concubines” chapter of Records of the Three Kingdoms, At first, Emperor Taizu had two wives Liu and Ding. Liu had a son called Zixiu and a daughter titled Princess Qinghe. As Liu died early, Ding nurtured her son Zixiu, and later Zixiu was killed at Rang (穰) by Zhang Xiu. For this reason, she often complained “[Zhang Xiu] killed our son and you still ignore this bastard’s crime!” What’s more, she kept on crying without end. Cao Cao felt furious and sent her back to her family, expecting that she would wake up to the reality. Later when he visited her, the woman was busy weaving. Even though someone said “The Lord comes,” she still carried on weaving indifferently. Cao Cao arrived, touching her back, “Would you like to go back with me?” She did not respond and even did not show the slightest expression. When he left, the lord stood outside, saying, “Is there any chance for me?” The lady gave no reply and Cao Cao said, “Alas, we’ll be separated forever!” He asked her family to marry her to someone else. However, they did not dare to do that. In the beginning, Ding was his principal wife and fostered Zixiu. So, she looked down upon Madame Bian and her son. But when Ding gave place to Bian as the empress, Madame Bian did not mind Ding’s outrageous deeds and sent her gifts when Cao Cao went out. What’s more, Bian invited Ding privately to sit in a superior position and seated herself inferior to Ding. In this way, Ding was invited and sent back as previously. Ding thanked her, “How can you treat a dismissed wife like me so well?” Later when Ding died and a request of joint burial was submitted, Cao Cao granted the request and Ding was buried south of the Ye city. When he was seriously ill and felt that he would die this time, the warlord sighed, “I’ve never regretted anything so much in my life. But if Zixiu asks me where his mother is, how can I reply?” Zixiu was actually Cao Cao’s eldest son Cao Ang (曹昂). In the second year (197) of the Jian’an period, he was killed by Zhang Xiu (张绣) during the southern expedition to Rangcheng (Deng county, Henan province). Zhang Xiu was a native of Zuli (祖厉), Wuwei (武威) and the nephew of Zhang Ji (张济), titled Calvary General of Longyou (陇右骠骑将军).31 When Lü Bu (吕布) killed Dong Zhuo, Zhang Xiu joined hands with Li Jue and others in attacking Lü Bu to avenge Dong Zhuo on him. Zhang Xiu followed Zhang Ji having “their troops stationed in Hongnong (弘农). The soldiers felt greatly hungry and attacked Rangcheng. In the attacking process, Zhang Ji was shot by a stray arrow. As a result, Zhang Xiu led his men to be stationed

146  Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum in Wan (宛) and unite with Liu Biao (刘表). During the southern expedition, Cao Cao’s troops were stationed on the Yu River (淯水) and Zhang Xiu with his men surrendered. Unexpectedly, Cao Cao brought Zhang Ji’s wife into his harem and thus Zhang Xiu felt great hatred towards him. When Cao Cao heard the news, he set a trap to kill Zhang Xiu. However, the trap was disclosed and Zhang Xiu assaulted Cao Cao, defeating him and taking a toll of his two family members.”32 Actually, his son Cao Ang and his nephew Cao Anmin (曹安民) laid down their lives. The “Annals of Emperor Wudi” chapter of Records of the Three Kingdoms says, “In the first spring month of the second year [of the Jian’an period], Cao Cao reached Wan. At first, Zhang Xiu surrendered and then he felt regretful, rising up against Cao Cao. Cao Cao fought with him and was defeated. He was shot by a stray arrow and his eldest son Cao Ang and his brother’s son Cao Anmin were killed.” Pei Songzhi quoted from The Book of Wei, “Cao Cao’s mount was a horse called Shadowless (绝影). The cheeks and hooves of the horse were injured by stray arrows and Cao Cao’s right arm was also injured;” he also quoted Account of Famous Remarks of Wei and Jin Dynasties, “Cao Ang was unable to ride the horse and sent the horse to his father. For this reason, Cao Cao escaped death and his son was killed.” The 10-​year-​old Cao Pi also had the accident. He said in Preface to Normative Discourses, “In the early years of the Jian’an period, Father King had a southern expedition to Jingzhou. When the troops reached Wan midway, Zhang Xiu surrendered. Ten days later he revolted and my brother Zixiu and my cousin Anmin were slain.” Later Cao Cao attacked Zhang Xiu many times, but failed to conquer him. In the 11th month of the fourth year of the Jian’an period, Cao Cao resisted Yuan Shao at Guandu and Zhang Xiu along with his men succumbed to Cao Cao using Jia Xu’s (贾诩) stratagem. In this way, Cao Cao felt greatly joyful. When Zhang Xiu arrived, Cao Cao held his hands and prepared a banquet for him. Moreover, he married Zhang Xiu’s daughter to his son Cao Jun (曹均). Zhang Xiu himself was titled General of Great Valor (扬武将军). Zhang Xiu defeated the Qiang troops and thus contributed greatly to the Battle of Guandu. Later he defeated Yuan Tan (袁谭) at Nanpi following Cao Cao and 2,000 households were added to his salary.33 Cao Cao himself knew that it was inappropriate to make Zhang Ji’s wife his consort, but he wanted to attract all the great heroes and talents from everywhere and thus entitled Zhang Xiu, who killed his son Cao Ang, a marquis for his feats. This act infuriated Madame Ding greatly and the woman repeated, “Zhang Xiu killed our son and you still ignore this bastard’s crime!” The woman often cried loudly and displeased Cao Cao because he wanted his wives to “keep calm at either joyful or sorrowful things.” For this reason, she was dismissed and relegated. Cao Ang’s death came as a tremendous blow to Cao Cao. The warlord concealed his sorrow and agony because he still desired to unify the world. But

Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum  147 as a woman, his wife Ding could not bear such a great tragedy, bursting into endless cries and complaints. Though he relegated Ding after a pang of anger, he expected that Ding could understand why he treated Zhang Xiu leniently. Nevertheless, Ding did not forgive him and suffered the pains silently. Cao Cao felt regretful and said those words in his autumn years. These words were deleted in Chen Shou’s Records of the Three Kingdoms and were reinserted in Pei Songzhi’s annotations. A careful look at the annotations shows that the passage was extracted from Yu Huan’s “Biographies of Empresses and Concubines,” Sketch of Wei. Instead, the quoted paragraph is incomplete because it sounds as if there should be one or more sentences after “how can I reply?” As mentioned above, Cao Cao once lamented, “If Zixiu asks me where his mother is, how can I reply?” So, his sons, ministers, and consorts will surely abide by his edict. In other words, there would be no regret for him as long as Ding and Liu were buried in the same tomb with him. Though there is no explicit record in this regard, it is safe to argue that Cao Cao should look back on his merits and faults and provide some comfort for Madame Ding who he had disappointed. Liu produced a boy and a girl for Cao Cao and died at least in her 20s during the Guanghe period of Emperor Lingdi of the Eastern Han epoch. Later when Cao Ang died on the battlefield in the second year (197) of the Jian’an period, this prince was about 19 or 20. Between the fourth and fifth years (199–​200) of the Jian’an period, Ding was dismissed when Cao Cao’s family members resided in Xu. In the eighth month of the ninth year (204) of the Jian’an period, Cao Cao took Ye and moved his family there while Ding still stayed in Xu. It seems that Ding died at over 50 before the 15th year of the Jian’an period. Ding and Liu, who died earlier than Cao Cao, seem to have similar ages to the two female skeletons discovered at the Grand West Tomb. Perhaps they were moved into the tomb after Cao Cao’s death. Cao Cao’s wives and concubines included not only the well-​ known Madame Bian, Madame Ding, and Madame Liu, but also others such as Ladies Huan, Du, Qin, and Yin, Second-​Rank Concubine Wang, Concubines Sun, Li, Zhou, Liu, Zong, and Zhao.34 It is recorded that they produced 25 sons for Cao Cao, but there is little information of their lives or ages. Were any two of them forced into committing suicide and were they buried with Cao Cao or buried alive with the late king? No such record exists and “The Will” indicates it was unlikely for Cao Cao to do that. “The Will” says, “All my concubines and musicians are hard-​working. They should dwell at Bronze Bird Terrace. Anyway, they should be treated well. … The remaining incense can be distributed to the ladies and no human shall be sacrificed. If the ladies have nothing to do, they could learn weaving and shoe-​making skills.”35 Obviously, Cao Cao repudiated live burial, which rules out the possibility of such an act. The two female skeletons can be none other than Madame Ding and Madame Liu. Historical record and archaeological excavation indicate that Gao Mausoleum is the tomb of Cao Cao and Ladies Ding and Liu in the company of his first wife Madame Bian’s tomb.

148  Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum The Grand West Tomb is the same as Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum in terms of location, direction, and type. Moreover, the identities of the two female skeletons can be explained textually. Thus, it is temporarily concluded that the tomb belongs to Cao Cao.

III.  Unearthed Antiquities and Relevant Research The identification of the tomb owner entails finding out direct evidence. With this in mind, I must first work through the huge number of unearthed objects to find those owned by Cao Cao and then compare the tomb layout with the Ye palace layout. (I)  Bronze seal and yellow silk robe with brocade collar and sleeves “The Last Order” says, “It simply taps into the high terrain, where no mound is made and no tree is planted;” other books say “It is a grand tomb lying on a high place.” The character ji (基) should be mu (墓). However, the words “bufeng bushu (不封不树)” can also be interpreted in another way. That is to say, “no mound is piled for the grave or tomb and no gravestone is erected.” The Han and Wei dynasties witnessed the shift of burial custom from overground tombstone construction to underground epitaph embedding. So, it is impossible to discover the epitaph in Cao Cao’s mausoleum. Before Cao Cao was buried, Cao Pi wrote “Lament for the Father King.” However, there is no trace of such writing in the Grand West Tomb. If the tomb is really Cao Cao’s mausoleum, there must be some direct evidence of this sort. The previous studies mostly focused on the stone tablet that describes a plethora of daily articles of King Wu of Wei, which implies that the Grand Tomb is likely to be Cao Cao’s mausoleum. Of course, the King might have given his articles such as the “tiger-​subduing halberd (格虎大戟)” to someone else, and thus these articles could have been buried with that man after his death. This slim possibility cannot be eliminated, owing to lack of evidence. However, it is impossible that those articles indicative of Cao Cao’s identity were also presented to another man. The Grand West Tomb boasts two artifacts of note: “bronze seal (铜印符)” and “yellow silk robe with brocade collar and sleeves (黄绫袍锦领袖)” stone tablet. The bronze seal should be regarded as a marker of the tomb-​owner’s surname and identity. On this seal is carved a sign that looks like the character cao (曹) in seal script. The character consists of two halves, and the upper half is a combination of two dongs (東) in traditional Chinese: First, two horizontal strokes of the two dongs are unified. Second, two yues (曰) are simplified into yi (一). Third, two vertical strokes connect the horizontal stokes and the yues. But there is another way of writing it. The two vertical strokes of the two dongs are integrated into one vertical stroke, as written on the seal. The lower half is a kou (口) or yue (曰). According to classical Chinese, there are different ways of writing both halves of the character.

Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum  149 The character cao is derived from two dongs or “two chongs (重) in parallel, the latter representing two men engaged in farming. The two mouths (口) suggest that there is a quarrel between the two men. When their quarrel reaches a certain level and produces a certain effect, they will be engaged in a legal case and thus considered to be the two parties of the case. The character cao is created to name the plaintiff or defendant by transforming kou into gan (甘) or yue and integrating this part with the other part consisting of two dongs.”36 An Analytical Dictionary of Chinese Characters and Examples of Refined Usage explains the character, The parties of a legal case are called caos. When a case is being heard, the plaintiff and defendant are in the east of the court. Therefore, the lower half of cao contains yue which refers to the act of hearing and the upper half of cao contains two dongs that mean east. Xu Kai (徐锴) annotated, “Character yue is used because the parties need to question and answer by verbal means during the hearing process.” From ancient times, there have been various forms of the character cao. The character cao on the bronze seal unearthed at the Grand West Tomb is different from its usual form. In May 2010, a 2×2 cm bronze seal was unearthed north of the Rear Chamber of Cao Xiu’s tomb on Mount Meng, Luoyang. The seal features characters Cao Xiu (曹休) in seal script in intaglio. This character is dissimilar to the same character on the bronze seal discovered at the Grand West Tomb. Cao Xiu died in the ninth month of the second year (228) of the Taihe period, just eight years after Cao Cao’s death. History shows that Cao Cao died in the first month of the 25th year (220) of the Jian’an period. So how can we explain this great difference? As Cao Cao founded State Wei, the character of his surname should be different from that of others in order to indicate that the founding emperor was unique. Coincidentally, later Wu Zetian (武则天) created a new character “Zhao (曌),” which means the coshining of the sun and moon. The coshining here means that this female emperor is no less powerful or strong than those male emperors. Cao Xiu’s seal provides the owner’s surname and given name while Cao Cao’s seal provides merely his surname. This is because the given names of emperors had been omitted in written materials from the Western Zhou epoch onwards. Cao Cao was no exception to this well-​established practice. If there is a seal where two characters Cao Cao (曹操) are carved, this seal must be a counterfeit. In this case, the Grand Tomb may plausibly is less likely belong to Cao Cao. The “Cao” bronze seal was discovered at the southern side of the rear chamber while the “Cao Xiu” seal was unearthed from the opposite side. The position of the bronze seal indicates that it should be placed beside the tomb-​owner. “Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum at Xigaoxue Village, Anyang City, Henan (河南安阳市西高穴曹操高陵)” [Archaeology, 2010 (8)] argues, “The traces of six stone burial ornaments are discovered. It is presumed

150  Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum there should be a stone coffin bed where a wooden coffin was placed.” This should be the original position where Cao Cao was buried. However, “a skull is discovered in the front chamber nearby the passage. Investigation shows that it belongs to a man about 60 years old.” If this skull belongs to Cao Cao, it should have been removed thereto randomly. Likewise, the two female skeletons are not located in their original positions. The report also says, “A wooden coffin is discovered on each side of the side room of the rear chamber and the four corners of each coffin feature an iron member.” The two side chambers should be the burial places of the two women and their remains were removed to the rear chamber in later grave robbery. The location of the bronze seal presents itself as a key proof for identifying the tomb owner. The bronze seal may be a token of the identity of the tomb-​owner because in the Han and Wei dynasties, tombstones had fallen into disuse and epitaphs were not brought into use. Cao Zhi said in “Eulogy of Father King,” “The imperial seal was not buried along with him and merely the fu (绋) was put into the coffin.” In the mausoleum, there is no seal of King Wu but a fu (绋) tied to Cao Cao’s body. This fu is quite confusing but it is presumably a silk ribbon that ties up the seal. Besides, it should be considered as a symbol of the seal. Besides, the “yellow silk robe with brocade collar and sleeves” stone tablet provides a solid piece of evidence. This tablet shows that the burial objects of the Grand West Tomb include such a yellow silk robe with brocade collar and sleeves.” The robe must belong to the tomb-​owner and be his official attire, which represents his rank. “Treatise on Carriages and Clothing (舆服志)37” of Book of the Later Han (后汉书) says, It is said that Duke Zhou (周公) usually held the young King Cheng of Zhou in his arms. For this reason, the duke wore a robe (袍). Record of Rite says, “Confucius wore loose single-​piece clothes.” Such clothes have broad sleeves because the folds are sewed together and are similar to present-​day robes. Now even the lowest officials wear a robe and single-​ piece middle clothes. The collar and sleeves of the upper middle garment have black edges, so that the middle clothes are used as an official suit. The above treatise also says, When the clothes design was established by Yellow Emperor, Yao or Shun, the world would be governed effectively. It is likely that the upper garment and lower garment of the clothes embody qian (乾) and kun (坤). As the world (乾坤) has a lot of patterns, the upper garment is black and the lower garment is yellow. Sun, moon, stars, mountain, dragon, and pheasant patterns are painted on the upper garment while tiger, ape, alga, fire, rice-​and-​pollen, and fufu (黼黻) patterns are embroidered on the lower garment. In this way, all the patterns are applied to the garments in various colors.

Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum  151 In the Han dynasty, each emperor wore green in spring, vermilion in early and mid-​summer, yellow in late summer and white and black garments in winter; no duke or prince could wear the same garments as the emperor. Apart from decorative patterns, ducal or princely garments should have collars and sleeves of differently colored brocade, which means there should be a clear division of hierarchy in clothing. Liu Xi (刘熙) explained in Explanations of Names (释名), “The character brocade (锦) sounds similar to gold (金). Brocade has crucial functions and thus is worth as much as gold. For this reason, gold (金) and silk (帛) are combined to form the new character “brocade (锦).”38 The Han dynasty placed restrictions on commerce and merchants or businessmen not wearing brocade attire. Brocade clothes became the privilege of the dignitaries. Ancient Chinese related five directions to five colors, with yellow representing the center and being considered the noblest of all. Cao Cao “cut silk to make new hats (帢) according to the shape design of ancient leather hats (皮弁).”39 State Wei achieved governance by the earth (土) of the five elements and thus venerated yellow. Therefore, “the capital and its surrounding areas were teeming with yellow dragon streamers (黄龙幡);”40 the pure yellow silk robe was specific to the emperor and the yellow silk robe with brocade collars and sleeves was exclusive to kings and dukes. The Han dynasty established a set of codes for emperor and official attire in terms of colors and patterns. This set of codes find their applications in royal robes as well as sacrificial and parade clothes and the like. For this reason, “Treatise on Carriages and Clothing” of Book of the Later Han, “The ritual clothing (礼服) is devised to reward meritorious or virtuous officials or venerate benevolent men or worthies. In brief, ritual aims to glorify dignitaries and sages and no violation of the hierarchical regulation is allowed. If anyone is not at the rank, he shall never wear the clothes of that rank.” The Han dynasty regulations on ritual attire suggests that the “yellow silk robe with brocade collar and sleeves” should be possessed by the tomb owner. It is presumed that he must be a well-​respected duke or king. There are two stone tablets inscribed with the characters “of King Wu of Wei (魏武王常所用)” unearthed from the Grand West Tomb. So, the tomb owner should be Cao Cao because no one else but him could be qualified to wear the yellow silk robe. Some scholars have assumed that Cao Cao might have given his Tiger-​ subduing Halberd and Tiger-​subduing Spear to another man. However, it was impossible for him to present the yellow silk robe with brocade collars and sleeves to anybody else. The yellow silk robe with brocade collars and sleeves, the broadsword, and the halberd were unearthed from the same tomb, which means that all these articles belonged to the tomb-​owner. With these factors considered all together, the tomb-​owner could be nobody but Cao Cao himself. (2)  Plan of the Grand West Tomb and the Design of the Ye Palace of Wei After his death, Cao Cao’s coffin was placed in the Hall of Literary Prosperity and removed to the Gao Mausoleum on the west hill of the Ye

152  Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum city. Cao Pi said in “Lament for the Father King,” “He bids an eternal adieu to the royal palace and sleeps in his tomb under the hill.” Cao Zhi wrote of the mausoleum, “His burial chamber would be deep, dark and free of sunlight, moonlight or starlight once the gate is was shut.” The Dark Palace (玄宇) of Gao Mausoleum and the Hall of Literary Prosperity should be of the same layout despite their different functions. In the ninth year (204) of the Jian’an period, Cao Cao subdued Ye and made it his national capital. In the following 15 or 16 years, he conducted a systematic design of the Ye city and especially its palace. The palace city was located in the north of Ye and shaped like the Purple Tenuity Enclosure. If there was a south–​north axis extending from the Polar Star, this axis would go across the Palace City and Barbican, with Inner Court, Daily Court, Harem, and West Garden among other buildings being symmetrical about the axis. The Hall of Literary Prosperity was flanked by the Hall of Hearing Political Decisions (east) and West Garden (west). There was an East Pavilion east of the Hall of Hearing Political Decisions. While Cao Cao battled outside, crown prince Cao Pi handled affairs at the pavilion. It can be said that the pavilion functioned like a Daily Court. Obviously, Cao Cao not only designed the palace architecture, but also planned his mausoleum with the same thought in mind. By comparing the Grand West Tomb and the Palace City of Ye, I come to know that they have several similarities: First, symmetrical layout. The Grand West Tomb is laid out like a character jia (甲) (Please see the plan view of “Report of Excavation of the Grand West Tomb-​Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum in Anyang City, Henan Province (河南安阳市西高穴曹操高陵).” The front and rear rooms of the burial chamber are distributed along the central axis and various side rooms are symmetrical about the axis. Second, Hall of Literary Prosperity and Hall of Hearing Political Decisions are the highest and East Pavilion is the third highest, which form the three main buildings: Outer Court, Middle Court, and Daily Court. The front chamber of the Grand West Tomb “is 3.85 m long (east–​west), 3.87 m wide (south–​north), and 6.40 m high; this chamber has a tented roof.” “The rear chamber with a tented roof is 3.82 m long (east–​west), 3.85 m wide (south–​ north) and 6.5 m high.” “The northern side room of the front chamber with a tented roof is 1.83 m long (south–​north), 2.79 m wide (east–​west), and 4.7 m high.”41 The front chamber, the rear chamber, and the left (northern) side room of the front chamber function like Hall of Literary Prosperity, Hall of Hearing Political Decisions, and East Pavilion respectively. Each chamber/​ room features a square bottom and a round dome, which symbolize earth and heaven. This accords with the line “His burial chamber would be deep, dark” in Cao Zhi’s “Eulogy of Father King.” Cao Cao always claimed “to treat the dead in the same way the living men are treated” and contrived the Ye palace and Gao Mausoleum accordingly. However, there is an obvious difference between the Grand West Tomb and the Ye palace. The former faced east while the latter faced south. Actually, the

Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum  153 Han dynasty witnessed a significant shift in ancient Chinese palace layout from “West First” to “North First.” During this period, east and south coexisted as two venerable directions. Next, the site selection of Gao Mausoleum was influenced by the surrounding environment and the marked features of the Ye city. As Ye city was the “main base” of Cao Cao’s hegemony, it is reasonable that his mausoleum faced east. What’s more, the character cao (曹) consists of two dongs (東). Also, Cao Cao depicted the east, east sea, and sunrise many times in his poems and documents. The eastward direction of the Gao Mausoleum aligns with his worship of the east. Also, Hall of Literary Prosperity, Hall of Hearing Political Decisions, and East Hall are distributed from west to east as the Ye palace is a rectangle of east–​west length. This layout and that of Three Terraces are in line with the Taoist architectural arrangement of Three Mountains. The right (front), middle (rear), and left chambers of the Grand West Tomb are distributed like Outer Court, Middle Court, and Daily Court. This symmetrical layout seems neater and stricter than that of Ye palace. Later Emperor Mingdi built the Hall of Supreme Ultimacy and then erected East Hall and West Hall flanking the Hall of Supreme Ultimacy, the layout of which is akin to the Grand West Tomb. Emperor Mingdi likely continued his grandfather Cao Cao’s thought on palace design. This layout had shaped the palace architectural distribution from the Wei and Jin through the Sui and Tang dynasties. A comparison of the Ye palace with the Luo palace shows that their layouts and the underlying philosophy agree well with Cao Cao’s thoughts. The goal of historical studies is to explore the truth. In this book, I want to make it clear whether the Grand West Tomb is the fabulous Gao Mausoleum. First, the sign carved on the bronze seal should be the character Cao; second, the regulation on the ritual clothes of the Han dynasty indicates that “yellow silk robe with brocade collar and sleeves” is the official attire of the tomb owner and thus the owner should be a duke or king; third, the string of stone tablets (石牌串) further confirms the identity of the tomb owner; finally, other proofs such as layout of the Ye palace, layout of the Luo palace, and layout and structure of the Grand West Tomb clarify that the tomb should most likely be the Gao Mausoleum.

Notes 1 Shou Chen, “Annals of Emperor Wudi (武帝纪),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志). 2 Pi Cao, Collected Works of Cao Pi (魏文帝集) vol 1. 3 Zhi Cao, Collected Works of King Si of Chen (陈思王集) vol 1. 4 Shou Chen, “Biography of Yu Jin (于禁传),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志). 5 Shou Chen, “Annals of Emperor Mingdi: Biographies of Empresses and Concubines (明帝纪·后妃传),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志). 6 Xin Na, A Record of Visits to Antiquities of Heshuo (河朔访古记) vol 2. 7 Zhicheng Deng (邓之诚), A Collection of Miscellaneous Historical Anecdotes (骨董琐记全编) vol 3.

154  Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum 8 Xian Cui, Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture (彰德府志), Jiajing period of the Ming dynasty (明·嘉靖) vol 4. 9 Pu Zhang (张溥), “Collected Works of Cao Cao (魏武帝集)” vol 1, Works of Three Caos (三曹集) (Hunan: Yuelu Press 岳麓书社, 1992). 10 John Lagerwey and Pierre Marsone, Modern Chinese Religion I (2 vols): Song-​ Liao-​Jin-​Yuan (960–​1368 ad) (Leiden: Brill, 2014), 506. 11 Xian Cui, “Miscellaneous Records (杂志),” Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture (彰德府志), Jiajing period of the Ming dynasty (明嘉靖) vol 8. 12 Kejun Yan (严可均), “Inscription on the Stele in the Shrine for Ximen Bao (西门豹祠堂碑),” Complete Northern Qi Prose (全北齐文) vol 8 (Beijing: Commer­ cial Press 商务印书馆, 1999), 90. 13 Chang Wang (王昶), “Inscription on the Stele at the Shrine for Ximen Bao (西门豹祠堂碑),” Collection of Seals and Stones (金石萃编) vol 33. 14 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 521. 15 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 255. 16 In China, a natural village (自然村) refers to a separate village; usually, an administrative village (行政村) consists of several natural villages. However, if a natural village is too large, it will be divided into several administrative villages. It is important that the administrative village is a grassroots administrative unit and a number of administrative villages constitute a town (镇) or township (乡). 17 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 230. 18 Zuomin Xu (许作民), Annotated Gazetteer of Ancient Ye City (古邺遗志校注) (Henan: Zhongzhou Ancient Books Publishing House 中州古籍出版社, 1996), 108. 19 Fang Li (李昉) et al., “Works of Cao Cao, Annotated: Imperial Commandment (曹操集译注·内诫令),” Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era (太平御览) (Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company 中华书局, 1979), 136. 20 This quote is from The Analects by Confucius (论语) and rendered into English by the translator. 21 Shou Chen, “Annals of Emperor Wudi (武帝纪),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志). 22 Fang Li 李昉et al., op cit, 195. 23 Ibid, 187. 24 Ibid, 166. 25 Shou Chen, “Annals of Emperor Mingdi (明帝纪),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 3. 26 Shou Chen, “Biographies of Empresses and Concubines (后妃传),” (三国志) vol 5. 27 Xian Cui, “Miscellaneous Records (杂志),” Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture (彰德府志), Jiajing period of the Ming dynasty (明嘉靖) vol 8. 28 Shou Chen, “Biographies of Princes of Emperor Wudi and Emperor Wendi (武文世王公传),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 20. 29 The word levee (old use) is a meeting in which a king receives visits from important people. For this use, please see Della Summers, Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English (Beijing: Foreign Languages Teaching and Research Press, 1997), 811. 30 Pu Zhang, “Works of King Si of Chen vol 1 (陈思王集卷一),” Collected Works of Three Caos (三曹集) (Hunan: Yuelu Press 岳麓书社, 1992). 31 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 379.

Identification of Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum  155 32 Shou Chen, “Biography of Zhang Xiu (张绣传),” Records of the Three Records (三国志) vol 8. 33 Shou Chen, “Biography of Zhang Xiu (张绣传),” Records of the Three Records (三国志) vol 8. 34 Shou Chen,“Biographies of Princes of Emperor Wudi and Emperor Wendi (武文世王公传),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志) vol 20. 35 Cao Cao, Collected Works of Cao Cao, Translated and Annotated (曹操集译注) (Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company 中华书局, 1979), 187. 36 Zhai Yue 约斋, (ed.), Origin of Characters (字源) (Shanghai: Shanghai Bookstore上海书店, 1986), 214. 37 Guojun Wang, Staging Personhood: Costuming in Early Qing Drama (New York: Columbia University Press, 2020), Note 8. 38 “Brocade (锦),” Writings for Elementary Instruction (初学记) vol 20. 39 Yiji Qian 钱仪吉, “Record of Chariots and Garments (舆服),” Essentials of Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国会要) vol 12. 40 Yiji Qian 钱仪吉, “Record of Chariots and Garments (舆服),” Essentials of Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国会要) vol 12. 41 Weibin Pan (潘伟斌) and Shukui Zhu (朱树奎), “Report of Excavation of the Grand West Tomb-​Cao Cao’s Gao Mausoleum in Anyang City, Henan Province (河南安阳市西高穴曹操高陵),” Archaeology (考古), 8 (2010).

4  Changes and destruction of the Ye City in the Wei and Jin dynasties

I.  Transition from the national capital to a regional center Ye city served as capital many times in history. When central China fell into chaos, a warlord or general often declared himself king and established his capital in Ye. In the Wei and Jin dynasties, central China was crucial for the stability of Ye as the capital. Though Ye was still called a capital, its status declined over time. Specifically, it became a regional center sandwiched between central China and the Hebei region and guarded the new capital Luoyang’s northern line of defense. In the first month of the 25th year (220) of the Jian’an period, Cao Cao passed away in Luoyang. Thereafter, Cao Pi succeeded to the title King of Wei in Ye, accepted the seal of Councilor-​in-​Chief and became Governor of Jizhou. In the second month, Emperor Xiandi of Han changed the period title to Yankang and in the tenth month, Cao Pi established Wei, replacing the Han court and making Luoyang his new capital. The period title was renamed Huangchu accordingly. Ye city played a key role in developing the Wei regime and making it replace the Han court. Wei took the place of Han in terms of five element orthodoxy. Luoyang, for more than 170 years the capital of the Eastern Han, was chosen as the capital of the new dynasty for four reasons: First, it agreed with the five element theory and justification of the feudal regime, and Cao Pi himself venerated the ritual tradition more than his father had done. Second, Luoyang was more advantageous than Ye for governing the greatly expanded territory of Wei because it lay at the geographical center of China. Third, Luoyang had no invasion threats, because Cao Cao had conquered the Hebei region, Wuhuan, and had defeated Han Sui (韩遂) and Ma Chao (马超) in Guanzhong. Fourth, Luoyang gradually replaced Ye city’s status as the military center of gravity, since Wu and Shu in the south became its main enemies. As political, military, and economic conditions changed constantly, the regional center changed its role frequently, thus achieving a socioeconomic balance in relative terms. This is why the capital often changed from one city to another in ancient China. In the Han and Wei dynasties, Luoyang would not have revived without the support of the Ye city. Or, to put it another way,

Changes and destruction of the Ye City  157 Ye was no longer the capital, but it still exercised some relevant functions. Lying northeast of Luoyang, Ye served as a defensive barrier for the new capital and controlled the Hebei region immediately. For this reason, in the first month of the second year (221) of the Huangchu period, Cao Pi proposed five capitals, namely Ye, Luoyang, Chang’an, Xuchang (许昌), and Qiao. And Ye was the highest after Luoyang. Though Luoyang was the capital, many previous royal relatives and nobles gathered in Ye. Cao Pi also made an administrative adjustment, dividing Wei commandery into three parts: The eastern part was named Yangping commandery (阳平郡), with its seat being located at Guantao (馆陶, southeast of present-​day Guantao, Hebei province). The western part was named Guangping commandery (广平郡), with its seat located at Quliang (曲梁, nowadays southeast of Linmingguan town and Guangfu town, Yongnian county, Hebei province). The middle part was still named the Wei commandery. These three commanderies were incorporated into the capital environs, which aimed to boost the geopolitical connection between Luoyang and Ye. When Emperor Mingdi of Wei died, the strife between the Cao Wei clique and the Sima clique escalated. On the sixth day of the first month of the tenth year (249) of the Zhengshi period when Cao Shuang (曹爽) and his brother went to the Gao Mausoleum along with the incumbent emperor Cao Fang (曹芳), Sima Yi (司马懿) staged a coup d’état, seizing power from the the emperor and his supporters. In the third year (251) of the Jiaping period, the Sima clan “removed all the dukes and princes of Wei to Ye” and kept them in custody. Cao Mao (曹髦), Lord of Gaogui village, was relegated to Yuancheng (元城, present-​day northeast of Daming county, Hebei province), Yangping commandery. In the ninth month of the sixth year (254) of the Jiaping period, Sima Shi (司马师) forced Cao Fang to abdicate the throne and titled him King of Qi; in the tenth month, Sima Shi brought Cao Mao to Luoyang and made him a puppet emperor. Aspirant as he was, Cao Mao no longer wanted to be controlled to bear any insults. He told his men, “Sima Zhao’s mind is known to everyone.” In the fifth month of the fifth year (260) of the Ganlu period, he amassed his men to attack Sima Zhao (司马昭). Cao Mao himself drew his sword saying, “Can I bear this any longer? Of course, I can’t!” In the end, he was defeated and killed. Sima Yan (司马炎) went to Ye and made Cao Huang (曹璜, namely Cao Huan) emperor, titling him Lord of Changdao village. As the Cao royalty was based in Ye, the Sima clan assigned troops to control the city each time they went out to fight. In the fifth year, Sima Zhao staged a western expedition, assigning Shan Tao (山涛) as Adjutant (行军司马)1 to lead 5,000 soldiers to guard Ye. Before his departure, Sima Zhao asked Shan Tao to assume his duty cautiously. In 265, Sima Yan forced Cao Huan to transfer the throne to him and declared himself emperor. Consequently, Cao Huan was reduced to King Liu of Chen and moved to the Ye palace, where he was kept under close watch. Ye city at first witnessed the rising of the Cao Wei regime and the confinement of the Cao-​Wei clique.

158  Changes and destruction of the Ye City In the 12th month of the second year (265) of the Xianxi period of Wei, Sima Yan deprived Wei of its throne and hailed himself as Emperor Wudi. In this way, he founded the Western Jin epoch and named his period Taishi. As the new dynasty became stable, the constraints on Ye were relaxed and the privileges of the Wei royalty were reduced. As a result, the handicraft industry serving the previous royalty shrank, as represented by decreasing workers and servants. In the sixth month of the fifth year (269) of the Taishi period, the Jin court assigned Guo Yi (郭廙), Director of Menial Service (奚官督)2 of Ye, as Chief Official of Tunliu. The character Xi (奚) means servitude and Xiren (奚人) refers to an official servant. In the Wei and Jin dynasties, Menial Supervisor was appointed to supervise the ranks of servants, laborers, and eunuchs (宫官),3 to provide basic supplies like medicines and clothes according to their rank. Later the supervisor was transferred to a local post, which marks the cancellation of the supervisory office. In the 12th month of the first year (275) of the Xianning period, Emperor Wudi ordered that “official servants of Ye should build a new city and replace soldiers to farm the land. Each 50 slaves and servants formed a tun (屯) and were led by an assistant (司马). This is the same as the state farmland (屯田) system.”4 In fact, the military farm (军屯) was replaced by the private farm (民屯) and thus the previous servants became dependants of the state. In the eighth month of the third year (277) of the Xianning period, Sima Lun (司马伦) was transferred from King of Langya (琅琊王) to King of Zhao (赵王) and defended Ye city. In the fifth year (279) of the Xianning period, the Jin court appointed ten Commanders-​in-​Chief (都督)5 and Army Supervisors (监军)6, including Sima Lun, the supervisor of Ye. In the eighth month of the first year (291) of the Yongping period, Sima Yong (司马颙) acted as Commandant of the North Garrison (北中郎將)7 at Ye and Sima Lun was reassigned General of Eastern Expedition (征东将军) and Commander-​in-​Chief of Xuzhou and Yanzhou. In the first month of the ninth year (299) of the Yuankang period, Empress Jia assigned Sima Ying (司马颖) as General for Pacifying the North (平北将军) to guard Ye to prevent those royal members or major ministers from intervening in state affairs. In the fourth month, Zhang Chengji (张承基), a native of Ye, assembled a force of several thousand, revolted and and then were slain by the local government. When Sima Ying, titled King of Chengdu, guarded Ye, he transported the grain of the Hebei region to Pengcheng to rescue disaster victims. This fact meant that at that time the water transport route from Ye city to Daliang and Pengcheng via the White Trench and the Yellow River was still in use. In the Western Jin epoch, Ye city was reduced from the national capital into a large town of Hebei region.

II.  Ye city in the Western Jin epoch In the Wei and Jin dynasties, Ye remained the Jian’an period’s basic layout, consisting of city walls, three terraces, halls, and streets. This remained the same until the Rebellion of the Eight Kings erupted.

Changes and destruction of the Ye City  159 Lu Ji, a writer of the Western Jin epoch, composed “A Trip from the Western Ye (遨游出西城诗),” As I leave Ye from west, I ride my horse around the city.8 In the eighth year (298) of the Yuankang period, Lu Ji acted as Editorial Director (著作郎).9 “When visiting the Secret Pavilion, [Lu Ji] came across Cao Cao’s ‘The Will’ and heaved a profound sigh.” As a result, he wrote “A Lament for Emperor Wudi of Wei with Preface,” quoting “The Will,” All my concubines and musicians are hard-​working. They should dwell at Bronze Bird Terrace. In the main hall of the terrace, a bed of six chi length along with a brocade curtain ornamented with hanging tassels should be prepared and dried meat and rations should be offered in the morning. … On every first or fifteenth day of the lunar month, they should sing and dance before the bed. They should mount this terrace and gaze at my tomb from time to time. The “A Lament for Emperor Wudi of Wei” says, Now a soloist plays a clear tune on the string instrument, but where is the Lord who can enjoy the offered meat or rations? I lament that the curtains hanging with tassels are indistinct and the West Mausoleum is nowhere to be found. I ascend the Bronze Bird Terrace, feeling a flurry of sorrow and finding no trace of his concubines. … When reading the Lord’s heroic writings, I can’t help but feel nostalgic and compose this essay.10 As he visited Bronze Bird Terrace and later read “The Will,” Lu Ji felt very sentimental, which shows us that the Three Terraces and relevant literature were in good condition in the Western Jin epoch. Jin dynasty scholar Yu Shu (庾倐)11)] wrote “Rhapsody on the Ice Well (冰井赋),” It is commendable that Yin and Yang spread everywhere and that Heaven and Earth are broad. All things are mixed up and there is no disparity between them; these things are unchanged, but they are interrelated with one another. Some things belong to yang and beget heat while others belong to yin and beget cold. Though opposite to each other in nature, hot things and cold things reach the same end.

160  Changes and destruction of the Ye City When they engage in interplaying, their lifespan will be extended. Therefore, in the first winter month, all forms of yin soar upwards; as a result, frost or snow falls from mid-​air and water forms ice. In winter, the earth below the south city wall should be excavated to put ice into the Ice Well; and in summer, the ice could be taken out to resist the heat in the remote palace. Ice is pure, clean by nature and melts into water. It embodies the arcane solid essence of nature and freezes a river for a long time. In this way, the four seasons alternate and heat gives way to cold repeatedly. The emperor wants to wipe out the hazard of great heat, ice and other similar things altogether create a great mass of coldness. Yin keeps on soaring and relies upon the city corner. Looking up, you will find ice on multiple structures; looking down, you will see coldness in a low, damp hollow. The winterscape is barren and bleak, and a wind whistles. It feels as if frost or snow were falling.12 The rhapsody praises highly the Ice Well Terrace because it balances heat (yang) and cold (yin) in the four seasons. In the summer of the second year (302) of the Yongning period of Emperor Huidi of the Western Jin epoch, Lu Yun (陆云) arrived in Ye and acted as Right Assistant of the General-​in-​Chief Sima Ying. He wrote “Rhapsody of Ascent to the Terraces (登台赋),” During the Yongning period, I took up a post as Assistant at the Command of the General-​in-​Chief in Ye. Once, I visited the Ye Palace and Three Terraces in an inspection tour for some affairs. As soon as I ascended the great heights, the views evoked in my mind feelings of nostalgia and inspired me to write a rhapsody: Endowed with the adorable grace of Heaven and Earth and blessed by the almighty power of the Sage Lord, I speak solemn utterances to praise His great enterprise. Now I have an excursion into the North Capital along with the procession. I tour around, enjoying sumptuous buildings and mounting the lofty [Golden Tiger] Terrace to march upward. Then I climb up steep hills and ascend higher; only when I reach a tower equaling the clouds can I take a rest. On there, I stop and see jasper edifices, my eyes flooded with exquisite windows. In the Central Plain, all plants are blossoming while green leaves are wafting and vibrating.

Changes and destruction of the Ye City  161 Commending the people for their diligence, I behold the vast expanse of Celestial Sundial. In a leisurely and carefree mood, I traverse the jade steps and walk in the orchid hall to wander with a footloose gait. As the Purple Palace is dotted with fallen petals, I am alarmed by a whirlwind from the cave-​rooms. Even when it dies away, the wind still assaults me, lifting up my hat and carrying it upward to the sky. The inner rooms zigzag their way and look quite tranquil; the long veranda sprawls forth, deserted and desolate. As far as the eye reaches, circular roads are easy to walk and huge buildings are dim and dark. Behind the innermost halls stand 100 rooms; beside the clustered terraces lie 1,000 side-​rooms. When I open the south window, summer heat rushes in; as I push open the north window, frost takes form for me to tread on. I get in a sunny hall that feels warm in winter and walk into a shady chamber that feels cool in summer. Myriad birds wind through concealed chambers and a startled phoenix flutters its wings to come along. A great diversity of images run riot here and there without the slightest regard to direction. So, I march towards the south—​master of fire, where the Vermilion Brightness (朱明) dominates. In the twilight when the sun stops its chariot, the spirit of the blaze sinks down below the west horizon. Heat overcomes cold and thus it feels hotter; shade covers a chasm and thus it looks dimmer. I feel greatly elated at staying under the nephrite waves and my mind sharpens when I gaze at all eight directions. I am disgusted by the mundane view of rainy buildings and detest the dilapidated edifice with chirping storks. Looking up, I see the Heavenly Court; looking down, I find 10,000 sorts of things. The North Sea soars and its waves surge up; the verdant forests display a glorious luxuriance. The Fusang Tree (扶桑) is tinier than the tip of a human hair and the Kunlun Mountain (昆仑) is shorter than a basket turned upside down. In an eye-​blink between my looking up and looking down, I notice that Heaven and Earth have been enclosed. All this universe falls within the same region and all things become one thing. All such things are originated from the unchanging law of myriad changes

162  Changes and destruction of the Ye City and tantamount to ten aeons on this day. The little corner of this world is narrow and thus unfit for my confidants. Now that the insight into formlessness is attained, why should I pursue the superficial form? I just take delight in this excursion and feel hurried to share with others my personal experience. In the morning, I ascend the Golden Tiger Terrace; at dusk, I enter the Hall of Literary Prosperity. Openwork windows are arrayed in the eastern wing-​room; vermilion doors are installed in the western wing-​room. I meander through flamboyant flowers to enjoy green foliage; and pepper-​painted walls spread a thick fragrance, leaving a lingering finish. Alas, the previous objects remain largely intact, but the previous men are gone forever! Leaning against the balustrade, I slip into a flight of reverie, considering the Heavenly Mandate at this hall. A feeling of lassitude creeps in and the trip becomes dreary as the white sun starts to hide its bright light. I dislike the fact that vernal excursions are sentimental and hate forgetting to return from the Bramble Terrace. As a result, I stop for a while and ride in a carriage to go on an outing. I am saddened that the trip will soon come to an end, so I move back and forth. Realizing that rises and falls are ephemeral, I entertain long feelings of prosperity and decline. When a dynasty rises, the cloud will soar high; but when it falls, the cloud will disperse accordingly. A good omen presents itself, indicating that the Celestial Mirror is directed at the Jin court. The Heavenly Mandate is followed, as represented by a soaring dragon. Through ups and downs, the chosen one started to found the Jin dynasty. Praising the Wei for its veneration of Heaven, the Jin rummaged the arcane tally to declare abdication of the throne. The East Pavilion at the Hall of Literary Prosperity was cleaned and the Purple Tenuity Enclosure constellation was vacated as a tribute. The Brightest Mansion under the heaven was transferred to the new dynasty and the worthies within the territory were all called to the attention of a promise—​ show your veneration, our emperor has followed the Heavenly Mandate and gaze at north with care;

Changes and destruction of the Ye City  163 concentrate your north gaze with care and extend the life-​cycle of this dynasty into the distant future. May the dynasty last as long as 10,000 years!13 As Lu Yun wrote, he walked out of the “sumptuous buildings (华室)” in the West Garden and visited the lofty terrace (崇台), climbed up steep hills (凌坻), reached a tower equaling the clouds (云阁), and gazed at jasper edifices (瑶轩). Also, he toured around those buildings on the terraces such as jade steps (玉阶), orchid hall (兰堂), Purple Court (紫庭), cave-​rooms (洞房), inner rooms (曲房), and long veranda (长廊). “Behind the innermost halls stand 100 rooms; beside the clustered terraces lie 1,000 side-​rooms.” The south window and north window represent a majestic cluster of buildings. Having left the Golden Tiger Terrace, the author went up into the Hall of Literary Prosperity. The names of those buildings remained unchanged for decades. In the Ye city, Lu Yun also wrote “Rhapsody on the Heavy Rain (愁霖赋),” “In the sixth month of the third year of Yongning period, a heavy rain lasted more than 10 days in Ye capital. Many crops were drowned and the people felt greatly worried. … For this reason, I made this rhapsody.” As there was no “third year” of the Yongning period, it should be the “second year actually” in the 12th month of the same year, the period was renamed Tai’an. The “Annals of Emperor Huidi” chapter of The Book of Jin says that in the seventh month of the first year (302) of the Tai’an period, a deluge hit Jizhou and nearby areas. When Lu Yun completed “Rhapsody on the Heavy Rain,” the rain stopped and the sun came out. Consequently, he composed “Clear Sky Rhapsody (喜霁赋).”14 Between the first year of the Yongning period and the second year of the Tai’an period (301–​302), Sima Ying built a mansion in the West Garden west of the Ye city. His aide Lu Yun wrote On the Thriftiness of the Princely Mansion in West Garden (闻起西园第宜遵节俭之制表)15 to admonish the king. Unexpectedly, Lu Yun was killed by Sima Ying in 302 and thus construction of the mansion must have occurred prior to that year. The landscape of the garden was never restored. Sima Ying even renovated the Ye palace. Wang Yin (王隐) said in The Book of Jin, “Some years after Gaotang Long carved an inscription on a column in a house of the Ye palace, which reads: ‘A Heaven’s Son should reside here years later.’ Later Emperor Huidi of Jin resided in the palace and renovated the house. When the clay around the column was removed, the characters were brought to light again. The time span carved thereon coincides with the actual number of years.”16 Gaotang Long, styled Shengping, was a native of Pingyang, Taishan. In the 18th year of the Jian’an period of Eastern Han, Cao Cao “assigned him Advisor to the Counselor-​in-​Chief and later he acted as Instructor of Marquis Licheng, Cao Hui. Finally, he became Administrator of Licheng Kingdom.”17 He likely got involved in designing the Ye palace and made suggestions on ritual. Otherwise, there would be no inscription of him. In the seventh month of the first year (304) of the Yong’an period, Sima Ying

164  Changes and destruction of the Ye City carried Emperor Huidi to Ye. The renovation of the Ye palace should occur at the same time. Besides, the locations of some pavilions are still unknown. Names of Jin Palace Halls (晋宫阙名) says, “Ye city had Bronze Bird Terrace and Weaver’s Terrace (织室台).”18 Zuo Si bore witness to the afterglow of Ye city. The Book of Jin says Zuo Si, styled Taichong, was a native of Linzi, Qi. … He was born in a Confucian family, … When he was little, Zuo Si started learning bell-​ beating, Hu writing, and lute-​playing. … Moreover, he was adept in the art of yin-​yang. … When his sister Zuo Fen (左芬) entered the royal court, he removed his family to the capital. … To make rhapsodies of the three capitals, Zuo Si spent a decade finding ingenious ideas. As he thought himself was not erudite enough, this man acted as secretary. As his rhapsodies were completed, Huangfu [Mi] wrote a commendatory introduction to these works. Zhang Zai (张载) even annotated the rhapsodies. … Later when Zhang Fang (张方) let his troops plunder the capital, Zuo Si relocated his family to Jizhou. Unfortunately, this scholar died of a disease several years later.19 Zhang Fang was a general under Sima Yong, titled King of Hejian. Zhang Fang attacked Sima Jiong (司马冏), King Qi in the 12th month of the first year (302) of the Tai’an period. It is therefore presumed that Zuo Si moved to Xindu, Jizhou (now north of Jizhou, Hebei province) during that time. In the spring of the second year of the Tai’an period, Zuo Si, who had to stay in Ye because the city lay on the path from Luoyang to Jizhou, extensively surveyed the surrounding natural environment, towns, gardens, blocks, and halls. At that time, Lu Yun also resided in the city, but they had no contact seemingly. Lu Yun’s brother Lu Ji also wanted to make three rhapsodies of the same names. Lu Ji clapped his hands with a flurry of laugh when he heard of the news. He wrote to Lu Yun, ‘There is a mundane man who wanted to make ‘Three Capital Rhapsodies.’ When the rhapsodies are completed, I would cover the wine jug with them because they are worthless.’ But actually when Zuo Si’s three rhapsodies came out, he felt the works were superb and beyond compare. Therefore, he dropped the idea of writing his own rhapsodies.”20 The rhapsodies that Lu Ji read were likely drafts. Annotation to “Letters and Scholarship,” A New Account of Tales of the World quotes from Biography of Zuo Si (左思别传) , “The revisions of the three rhapsodies only stopped at his death.”21 As Lu Kanru (陆侃如) said in “Chronology of Medieval Chinese literature (中古文学系年),22” “Zuo Si died about 305 between the period of Emperor Huidi and the period of Emperor Huaidi.”23 He died in

Changes and destruction of the Ye City  165 Xindu, Jizhou and ‘Wei Capital Rhapsody’ was finalized in the city during the period, which is considered the last work of Zuo Si. Zuo Si witnessed the glorious resplendence and geographical conditions of Ye city, with “Wei Capital Rhapsody” the most realistic of all three rhapsodies. This rhapsody depicts the Wei commandery’s geographical conditions, folk customs, plantation, scenery, soil, civil construction, sacrificial altar, Hallowed Temple, storied palaces, Hall of Literary Prosperity, long courtyard, bells and bell-​ stands, twin gatetowers, Hall of Hearing Political Decisions, Government Office, West Garden, Three Terraces, Four Gates, Xuanwu Park, 12 Channels of Western Ye, streets, bureaus and headquarters (府寺), wards and gates (闾里), district markets, guest lodges (客馆), grassroots urban life, royal field rituals, products, humans, and folk customs. It is more voluminous than “Shu Capital Rhapsody (蜀都赋)” and “Wu Capital Rhapsody (吴都赋).” In the final years of the Western Jin epoch, the Ye city and the Three Terraces were burnt down. Lu Chen (卢谌) wrote in “Rhapsody of Ascent to the Terraces (登台赋),” Xianyang Gate crumpled and fell down; the Hall of Literary Prosperity bent and ended in ruins. The Bronze Vessel Terrace collapsed beside the terrace; the giant bells flanking the steps broke down. Alas, the spiritual shrines of the past emperors now became abodes of foxes and hares.” Indeed, Lu Zhan saw a bleak and ghastly cityscape when Ye was ruined by Ji Sang. Back in the Wei and Jin dynasties, each district market of the Ye city had a superintendent and this superintendent closely befriended many great merchants. The Commissioner for Agriculture (典农中郎将)24 was assigned by the city government. This official took charge of agricultural and business affairs and was in close touch with the market head. Also, there were other officials engaged in business, so close collusion was rampant in those days. As the “Biography of Shi Bao (石苞传)” chapter of The Book of Jin says, “Shi Bao was a native of Nanpi, Bohai. He made a living by selling iron in Ye. Market Superintendent (市长) Zhao Yuanru (赵元儒), a native of Pei, encountered him and became his friend. Incumbent emperor Sima Shi promoted Shi Bao to Supervisor of Agriculture Office. At that time, most dukes and princes of Wei dwelt in Ye. Imperial Secretary Ding Mi (丁谧) pursued profit despite his tremendous prestige. Shi Bao listed his misdeeds in a memorial to the emperor and received greater acclaim from then on.” According to “Biography of Shi Bao,” The Book of Jin, the Ye city had a Menial Supervisor. As Shi Bao handled affairs improperly, Guo Yi submitted a memorandum indicating his misconduct. The mansions of the Commissioner for Agriculture, Market Superintendent, and Menial Supervisor were all located in the south of Ye. Besides, Commissioners/​Commandants (虎贲), Cavalry of the Forest of Plumes (羽林), and Five Battalions (五营) were also stationed in the same location to take charge of city security and defense.

166  Changes and destruction of the Ye City Ye also had townships. The “Record of Official Titles” chapter in volume 24 of The Book of Jin says, “two townships should be established if there were more than 3,000 households. Each township had a Collector (啬夫),25 Scribe (史),26 Assistant (佐),27 and Head (正).28” It seems that such units were located in the suburbs of the city. The southern half of Ye is mainly residential quarters for ordinary people. Gan Bao (干宝) told the story “He Wen exterminated his house ogres (何文除宅妖)” in volume 17 of The Search of Spirits (搜神记), Zhang Fen (张奋) of Wei commandery, used to have a rich family. In an eye-​blink, his parents grew old and his family wealth was scattered. Even his estate was sold to Cheng Ying (程应). As Cheng Ying moved in, all his family members fell ill. Hence, Cheng Ying transferred it to his neighbor He Wen (何文). With a sword in one hand, He Wen climbed onto the middle beam of the North Hall. When the third watch came to an end, a man as high as one zhang entered the hall, wearing a high hat and yellow clothes. He shouted, ‘Slender Waist!’ A slender-​waist woman responded. He asked, ‘Why does this house have the breath of a living man?’ The woman replied, ‘No.’ Soon later, the huge man vanished. Another man arrived in a high hat and green clothes, asking the same question and disappearing. In the end, the third man followed suit in a high hat and white clothes and asked the question again. Daybreak was drawing near. He Wen descended into the center of the hall, asking questions: ‘Who’s that person in yellow?’ The voice replied, ‘He’s gold buried under the west wall of the hall.’ ‘Who’s that person in green? ‘He’s coins buried five steps away from the well in front of the hall.’ ‘Who’s that guy in white?’ ‘He’s silver lurking under the column at the northeast corner of the walls.’ ‘Then who’re you?’ ‘I am a pestle buried under the kitchen range.’ At dawn, he dug the places and got 500 jin of gold, 500 jin of silver, and tens of thousands of strings of coins. Besides, he found out the pestle and burnt it down. From this point on, He Wen became wealthy and the house was peaceful. This supernatural story reflects that the ordinary residents in Ye owned private houses and were able to buy and sell their houses at will. Actually, there were a good number of rich families and others of growing wealth in the city. He Wen acquired the aforesaid 500 jin of gold and thus became wealthy. Judging from this story, business really prospered at that time and such property deals were commonly seen. According to “Record of Official Titles,” The Book of Jin, “In the Wei and Jin dynasties, a head was assigned to take charge of Xuanwu Park and came under the administration of Chamberlain for Dependencies at once. Xuanwu Park was a vital royal garden of the Ye city.” Chirping-​ Bird Garden (鸣鹄园) and Grape Garden (蒲萄园). The “Gardens (园)” chapter in volume 65 of Classified Assemblages of the Arts

Changes and destruction of the Ye City  167 and Letters and the “Gardens and Orchards (园圃)” chapter in volume 350 of Comprehensive Mirror of Encyclopedias (渊鉴类函渊)29 quotes Palace Names of Jin Dynasty, “Ye city has Chirping-​Bird Garden and Grape Garden.” The two gardens were seemingly located within the Xuanwu Park. In the Jin dynasty, Buddhism started to spread in the Ye city and thus there were pagodas. According to “Record of Classics and Texts (经籍志),” The Book of Sui (隋书), In the Ganlu period, Zhu Shixing (朱仕行) went to the Western Regions and found a 90-​chapter Pancavi Satisahasrika Prajnaparamita Sutra when he reached Khotan (于阗). In the Yuankang period of the Jin dynasty, he returned to Ye where he translated the Sanskrit scripture into Chinese and renamed it Light-​Emitting Prajnaparamita Sutra (放光般若经).30 In Fukou Pass northwest of Ye, there is a Black Dragon Cave (黑龙洞) where locals prayed for rain in the Han and Wei dynasties. Gan Bao created a story titled “A Sick Dragon Asked for Treatment (病龙求医)” in volume 20 of The Search for Spirits, In Kangyang (亢阳) of Wei commandery of the Jin, a peasant prayed in the dragon cave for rain. The rain arrived and he desired to thank the dragon by offering sacrifices. When Sun Deng (孙登) saw it, he directly said, ‘This rain comes from a sick dragon. How can it nourish the crops? If you don’t believe, please sniff it.’ The peasant smelled the water and felt odorous and dirty. As soon as the dragon heard these words, he transformed himself into an old man asking for treatment. Actually, the dragon had ulcers on his back. ‘If my ulcers are cured, I would like to repay you.’ As expected, a downpour came several days later. The peasant saw the large rock breaking open and a well popping up. The water looked deep and crystal. It was likely a bonus sent by the dragon. Apparently, this quote depicts a supernatural story, but it also gives a hint of the rain-​praying custom of Ye city.

III.  Rebellion of the eight kings and the burning down of the Ye city When the Jin replaced the Wei regime, this change should definitely be regarded as a coup. As Emperor Wudi of Jin took the throne, he enfeoffed kings of the same surname, which unexpectedly set the scene for the later rebellion of eight kings. When Emperor Wudi died, Huidi acceded to the throne and received the assistance of his maternal grandfather Yang Jun (杨骏). Unexpectedly, Empress Jia Nanfeng (贾南风) and Sima Wei (司马玮) King of Chu later plotted the death of Yang Jun, and then the empress murdered Sima Wei by the hands of Emperor Huidi, which paved the way for her dominance over

168  Changes and destruction of the Ye City the court. Emperor Huidi’s crown prince Sima Yu (司马遹) was intelligent and dauntless, but he was not Jia Nanfeng’s son. For this reason, the empress hated him and killed him through a fabricated excuse, which directly caused the rebellion of the eight kings in Luoyang and Ye. In the fourth month of the first year (300) of the Yongkang period, Sima Lun killed Empress Jia and her clan and underlings. In the first month of the next year he venerated Emperor Huidi as a retired emperor and proclaimed himself emperor. In the third month, Sima Jiong, Sima Ying, Sima Yong, Sima Yi (司马乂), and others rose up against Sima Lun, breaking into Luoyang and restoring the throne of Emperor Huidi. As a result, Sima Lun was forced to commit suicide. In the sixth month, Emperor Huidi enfeoffed Sima Jiong, Sima Ying, and Sima Yong. What’s more, the emperor tried to make them stay in Luoyang to assist the court with state affairs. Sima Ying didn’t want to stay there and returned to Ye with his troops on the excuse that his mother had fallen ill. Sima Ying transported 150,000 hu of rice from Dige (邸阁), Hebei to Yangdi (阳翟), saving endless people from the grip of famine. When the emperor asked him again to serve at the court, Sima Ying refused the order implicitly because his eunuch Meng Jiu (孟玖) and his mother Madame Cheng adored the Ye palace according to his words. In the 12th month of the first year (302) of the Tai’an period, Sima Yong, Sima Ying, and Sima Xiao (司马虓) King of Fanyang rose up against Sima Jiong because he tyrannized the court. Sima Yi killed Sima Jiong and his kin and underlings. As a result, Emperor Huidi assigned Sima Yi as Defender-​in-​Chief (太尉)31 and Commander-​in-​Chief for the Middle Army and Outer Army (都督中外诸军事). When Sima Yi was at court, he consulted Sima Ying on everything, frivolous or important. The following year Sima Yong plotted to exterminate Sima Yi, but the intrigue leaked out, leading to the death of all those courtiers involved. When Sima Yong heard of their death, he mobilized his troops to attack Sima Yi, and Sima Ying offered help. In the first month of the first year (304) of the Yong’an period, Sima Yue (司马越), King of the East Sea, inside Luoyang suddenly attacked Sima Yi and opened the city gate, letting troops get in to kill Sima Yi. As Sima Yi was killed, the ministers and courtiers went to Ye to ask for forgiveness. Moreover, they requested Sima Ying to visit the capital, and Emperor Huidi assigned Sima Ying as Counselor-​in-​Chief. Sima Ying appointed Shi Chao (石超), titled Valiant General, to lead a troop of 50,000 to guard the 12 gates of Luoyang and establish his mansion in Ye. Also, he appointed Lu Zhi (卢志), Ye county magistrate as Secretariat Supervisor (中书监) and ordered him to manage affairs of the mansion. In the third month, Emperor Huidi titled Sima Ying as Crown Brother (皇太弟) to command the Middle Army and Outer Army. Meanwhile, Sima Ying served as Counselor-​in-​Chief and ordered the emperor and dukes and other princes and their servants to move to the Ye city. Despite being based in Ye, Sima Ying controlled Luoyang and thus the court became a court in name only. In the seventh month, Sima Yue revolted against Sima Ying, and Sima Ying’s general Shi Chao returned from Luoyang to Ye. Sima Yue claimed himself Commander-​in-​Chief and assembled troops from

Changes and destruction of the Ye City  169 various prefectures and towns. When he marched north and reached Anyang with Emperor Huidi in his grasp, his troops had amounted to more than 100,000 and the entire Ye city was stunned. Sima Ying appointed Shi Chao to strike Sima Yue back and finally defeated Sima Yue in Tangyin. Emperor Huidi was brought back to Ye, and Sima Yue escaped to his own kingdom. During the 11-​year-​long rebellion, Sima Ying always had the upper hand. He killed Sima Lun and Sima Jiong, attacked Sima Yi, defeated Sima Yue, and finally captured Emperor Huidi. How could he be so powerful? First, he had a lot of troops and forage. Second, he constantly pretended to hold the authority of the court. Finally, but most importantly, he and his troops were based in Ye near to Luoyang, and thus he had little difficulty in controlling the court. He knew this point so well that he didn’t go even when the incumbent emperor summoned him several times. Sima Ying rejected the imperial edicts, and the court in Luoyang had to follow his orders. A counselor-​in-​chief in the Ye city controlled the court in Luoyang, which is seldom seen in Chinese history. As soon as he left the city, this king was soon imprisoned. During the rebellion, General Wang Jun (王浚), based in Youzhou, allied with Xianbei General Duan Wuchen (段勿尘), Wuhuan General Jie Zhu (羯朱), and Sima Teng (司马腾), titled Duke of Dongying, to attack Sima Ying. In the end, they defeated the troops of Sima Ying, looming over Ye. Everyone in the city was therefore terrified, and all officials and common people fled. Lu Zhi, Sima Ying’s general, persuaded him to carry Emperor Huidi back to Luoyang. In those days, the capital still had 15,000 armored warriors and Lu Zhi organized them into a force overnight. Next morning they set out, but Sima Ying’s mother felt attached to Ye and did not want to leave. Even Sima Ying himself was uncertain whether to leave or not. Soon after, many men escaped in all directions. Sima Ying led the remaining dozens of soldiers and Lu Zhi to flee south to Luoyang, carrying Emperor Huidi on an ox carriage. As soon as Wang Jun entered Ye, he issued an order that allowed his underlings and soldiers to do whatever they wanted. As a result, they committed mass plundering and slaughter. Xianbei soldiers took away many Han women from Ye. But when they came to the Yi River (易水) during the return trip to Ji (蓟, southwest of present-​day Beijing), Wang Jun ordered that no woman should be carried on the way and anyone committing this crime would be killed. For this reason, “the 8,000 women were forcibly drowned.” This ferocity was the first tragedy caused by war. From then on, the Western Jin’s influence on Ye and Jizhou continued to decrease. In the 12th month of the first year (304) of the Yongxing period, Emperor Huidi nullified Sima Ying’s king title and reassigned Sima Mo (司马模), Commandant of the East Garrison (东中郎将), as General of Pacifying the North (北宁将军) to supervise Jizhou and to guard Ye; and appointed Sima Chi (司马炽) as Great General of Guarding the North (镇北大将军) and titled him Crown Brother. In the seventh month of the following year, in response to Sima Ying’s former general Gongshi Fan (公师藩), Ji Sang and Shi Le revolted in Zhao and Wei, took Yangping (present-​day northeast of Daming county,

170  Changes and destruction of the Ye City Hebei province), and attacked Ye. General Sima Mo was horrified while Sima Xiao sent out his general Gou Xi (苟晞), repelling the enemies and saving the city. In the eighth month of the first year (306) of the Guangxi period, the Jin court appointed Sima Xiao as Minister of Works to replace Sima Mo as commander of Ye. When Sima Xiao died in the tenth month, Sima Teng was titled Chariot and Horse General (车骑将军)32 to handle the military affairs of Ye. In the fifth month of the first year (307) of the Yongjia period, Ji Sang and Shi Le attacked Ye again, breaking through the troops of Feng Song (冯嵩), Governor of Wei Commandery and surging into the Ye city. The defending general Sima Teng escaped on horseback, and Ji Sang and Shi Le set light to Ye palace, which burned for more than ten days. Consequently, more than 10,000 soldiers and common people were slaughtered. All their property and money were plundered. The famous Ye city, which peaked in prosperity after more than 100 years’ development, was destroyed in a raging fire. So, Hu Sansheng (胡三省) lamented in his annotations to History as a Mirror, “At first, Yuan Shao occupied Ye and started building palaces and halls; later Cao Cao expanded the city and buildings. Now all their efforts turned into ashes.”

Notes

1 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 203. 2 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 227. 3 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 293. 4 “Record of Economics (食货志),” The Book of Jin vol 26. 5 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 544. 6 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 147. 7 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 301. 8 Xun Ouyang, “Tours (游览),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 28. 9 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 184. 10 Xun Ouyang et al., “Eulogies and Condolences (吊),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 40. 11 As to the name Yu Shu (庾倐), the character Shu (倐) should be replaced by Xiao (儵). This is Wang Shaoying’s (汪绍楹) view. Wang argued against this view by quoting The Book of Jin (晋书) vol 8 and vol 73 when proofreading Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚). 12 Xun Ouyang et al., “Water: Ice (水部下：冰),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 9. 13 Kejun Yan, ed, “Complete Jin Prose: Rhapsody of Ascent to the Terraces (全晋文：登台赋),” op cit, (Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company 中华书局, 1985), 100, 2, 2032–​33. 14 Kejun Yan, “Complete Jin Prose: Rhapsody on the Heavy Rain and Clear Sky Rhapsody (全晋文：愁霖赋、喜霁赋),” ed, op cit, 2031–​32. 15 Xun Ouyang et al., “Houses and Mansions (宅舍),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 64. 16 Xun Ouyang et al., “Palaces (宫),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 62.

Changes and destruction of the Ye City  171 17 Shou Chen, “Biography of Gaotang Long (高堂隆传),” Records of the Three Kingdoms (三国志). vol 25. 18 Xun Ouyang et al., “Terraces (台),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 62; I suspect that Names of Jin Palaces with Gate Towers (晋宫阙名) is actually Names of Pavilions in the Jin Palaces (晋宫阁名). 19 Xuanling Fang, “Literary Circles: Zuo Si (文苑•左思),” The Book of Jin (晋书) vol 92. 20 Xuanling Fang, “Literary Circles: Zuo Si (文苑•左思),” The Book of Jin (晋书) vol 92. 21 Richard B Mather, op cit, 136. 22 Dominik Declercq, Writing against the State: Political Rhetorics in Third and Fourth Century China (Laiden: Brill, 1998), 420. 23 Kanru Lu (陆侃如), Chronology of Medieval Chinese literature (中古文学系年) (Beijing: People’s Literature Publishing House 人民文学出版社, 1985), 803. 24 Rafe de Crespigny, Imperial Warlord: A Biography of Cao Cao 155–​220 ad (Laiden: Brill Academic Publishers, 2010), 91. 25 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 404. 26 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 421. 27 Charles O Hucker, loc cit. 28 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 303. 29 Denecke, Wai-​yee Li, and Xiaofei Tian, op cit, 328. 30 Rev S Beal, The Buddhist Tripitaka as it is Known in China and Japan: A Catalogue and Compendious Report (Dresden: Andesite Press, 2015), 5. 31 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 485. 32 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 120.

5  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao and its layout design

I.  The founding of Later Zhao and the relocation of its capital to Ye When Ji Sang burnt down the Ye city, the Western Jin regime amassed huge numbers of troops and suppressed the revolt after a great effort. Jie general Shi Le fled to Han emperor Liu Yuan (刘渊) for shelter. In the 11th month of the first year (307) of the Yongjia period, the Jin court appointed Right Vice Director of the Imperial Secretariat (尚书右仆射)1 He Yu (和郁) as General of Northern Expedition (征北将军) to guard Ye. The following year, Shi Le revolted in Leping (乐平, now southwest of Xiyang county, Shanxi province), bringing his army to Zhao and Wei commanderies and attacking the Ye city. He Yu abandoned the city and escaped to Wei (卫). Finally, Shi Le bound Governor of Wei Commandery Wang Cui (王粹) and killed him at Three Terraces and conquered Changshan, Zhao commandery, Julu, Zhongshan, Boling (博陵), Gaoyang (高阳), Qinghe (清河), and Guangzong (广宗), among other places. In brief, the warlord swept over the Heshuo region (河朔) and more than 100,000 men surrendered to him. Then Shi Le marched south and had his troops stationed at Gebei (葛陂, now north of Xincai, Henan province) in the second month of the sixth year (312) of the Yongjia period, desiring to attack Jianye (建业, now Nanjing, Jiangsu province). But unfortunately, it rained for months and the troops were afflicted with hunger and an epidemic. As a result, half of the troops died. To make matters worse, Shi Le ascertained that the Jin court was about to attack them. Caught in such a dilemma, Shi Le asked his mastermind Zhang Bin (张宾) what he should do next. Zhang Bin replied, “Ye city has Three Terraces and Pingyang lies on the west of Ye. Besides, there are mountains and waters on all four sides of the city. The [Heshuo] region was a strategic place and we should move north to occupy it and repress those rebels. As soon as the region was pacified, you would gain a military vantage point beyond comparison.”2 Shi Le accepted his advice and led his troops northward, reaching Ye in the seventh month. Liu Kun (刘琨), Regional Inspector of Bingzhou (并州刺史)3 appointed his nephew Liu Yan (刘演) as Governor of Wei Commandery to guard Ye along with the Three Terraces for the sake of self-​defense. Zhang Bin advised Shi Le,

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  173 Liu Yan did not have strong troops, yet his men amounted to several thousands. The Three Terraces are precipitous and difficult to attack at one stretch. However, if we let go of the city, they would collapse in their own right. … So, we should select a convenient location to collect foods and annex Pingyang west of Ye to menace Youzhou and Bingzhou. In this way, you will make yourself a king or lord. Handan or Xiang is an advantageous place and you can choose either as the capital.”4 Shi Le followed his advice once more, marching towards Xiang (襄国, now Xingtai, Hebei province). As soon as he gained a firm foothold in Xiang, Shi Le ordered his generals to attack Jizhou, and so most fortresses in the counties and commanderies swore their allegiance to Shi Le. Those fortresses and forts even transported their grain to Xiang. The following year Shi Le let Shi Hu lead a force to attack Ye, and the army defending the city collapsed. Liu Yan fled to Linqiu (廪丘, now west of Yuncheng, Shandong province) and all refugees of Three Terraces allied to Shi Le. Shi Le assigned Tao Bao (桃豹) as Governor of Wei and replaced Tao Bao with Shi Hu to guard Ye and its Three Terraces to strengthen control over the city. In 319, Shi Le hailed himself King of Zhao and founded Later Zhao. In the eighth year (326) of Later Zhao, Cheng Xia (程遐) was afraid that Shi Hu might have too much power and so proposed that Shi Hu’s power be weakened. Thereupon, Shi Le ordered his eldest son Shi Hong (石弘) to guard Ye and gave him 10,000 royal guards and the soldiers of 54 battalions from Chariot and Calvary General. General of the Resolute Calvary (骁骑将军)5 led Director of the Barbarian Lawsuit (门臣祭酒)6 Wang Yang (王阳), who governed the Six Ethnic Peoples, to assist Shi Hong in administrative affairs. At that time, Ye had become Later Zhao’s second political center. In the seventh month of the fourth year (333) of the Jianping period, Shi Le died and crown prince Shi Hong took the throne. Despite that, Shi Hu dominated the court and killed Cheng Xia and other courtiers. The next month Shi Hong appointed Shi Hu Counselor-​in-​Chief, King of Wei and Great Chanyu. Shi Hu was even granted nine supreme gifts (加九锡) and assigned to guard Ye, governing 13 commanderies including Wei. Shi Hu took charge of military and political affairs and made his son Shi Sui (石邃) Crown Prince and Commander-​in-​Chief of the Middle Army and Outer Army. What’s more, even Shi Sui’s aides and kin became important officials of the Department of State Affairs (台省).7 In the 11th month of the next year, Shi Hu reduced Shi Hong to King of Haiyang and declared himself Regent. It was not long before he killed Shi Hong and his mother Empress Cheng. In the ninth month of the first year (335) of the Jianwu period, Shi Hu removed the capital from Xiang to Ye. As Ye became the capital once more, many palaces were reconstructed accordingly, so that this political center played an increasing role in the new dynasty. From the first year of the Jianwu period to the first year (349) of the Taining period, the city’s sphere of political influence had covered most areas north of the Yangtze River and thus rivaled Jiankang (建康, now Nanjing,

174  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao Jiangsu province). Based in Ye and Jiankang, Later Zhao and Eastern Jin desired to expand their political models further afield. This geopolitical south–​north confrontation dominated China and influenced the following Southern and Northern Dynasties.

II.  Reconstruction of the Ye city Following the Yongxing period of Western Jin, Ye had suffered the ravages of war. As soon as Ye became its capital, Later Zhao conducted extensive reconstruction, which fell into two stages: The first stage lasted from the first year (313) of the Jianxing period of Jin to the first year (333) of the Yanxi period of Later Zhao under Shi Le’s rule, and included the redesign of Ye city and the initial reconstruction of Ye palace. Shi Le had intended to occupy Ye quite early; when he established himself in Xiang, the lord conquered Ye instantly and assigned Tao Bao and then Si Hu to guard Ye in succession. In the early Later Zhao dynasty, the main buildings within Ye were clustered near the Three Terraces at the northwest corner of the city; most government offices and palaces and halls were erected in haste after Ji Sang’s fire and thus they looked fairly low poor and rustic. When Shi Hu acted as Governor of Wei, the commandery seat and his family were arrayed at Three Terraces. In the tenth month of the eighth (326) year of Later Zhao, Shi Le rebuilt Ye palace upon Cheng Xia’s advice, making his eldest son Shi Hong replace Shi Hu as guardian of Ye. The newly built palace lay on the eastern side of Three Terraces. In other words, the government office of Wei commandery and the mansions of Shi Hu’s family were dismantled, which caused Shi Hu great discontent. “As the Three Terraces were rebuilt and his family was removed, Shi Hu harbored hatred against Cheng Xia.”8 Thereafter, Shi Hu conducted a redesign of Ye city; in the fourth month of the second year (331) of the Jianping period, Shi Hu visited Ye and wanted to expand the new palace, but encountered opposition from the Chamberlain for Law Enforcement Xu Xian (续咸). Shi Le felt was furious and nearly executed the chamberlain, which reflects the lord’s adamant determination. In that summer, there were frequent storms, and floods came down from the mountains northwest of Zhongshan commandery. Consequently, trees on both sides of the rivers were uprooted and carried downstream to Tangyang (堂阳, now north of Xinhe county, Hebei province). There were more than one million uprooted trees, which gave Shi Le an excuse to reconstruct Ye.9 Then he instructed the Chamberlain for the Palace Revenues, Ren Wang (任汪) and the Commissioner of Waterways (都水使者)10 Zhang Jian (张渐) to supervise palace construction. Shi Le himself decided the scale of the city and took charge of the overall design. In the first year of the Yanxi period, the new palace was completed; four months later, Shi Le arrived in Ye and received all courtiers at the Ye palace. Even so, the new palace was located within Bronze Bird Garden of the Cao-​Wei dynasty and was not very large because the construction was completed within two or three years. The second stage lasted from the first year (335) to the 13th year (347) of the Jianwu period during the reign of Shi Hu. In 335, Shi Hu removed the

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  175 capital to Ye and commenced massive reconstruction. The project was mostly based on Shi Le’s overall design and dissimilar to Cao Cao’s thought. Inside came first and outside second: Inner Palace first and then the Grand Court. In the first year of the Jianwu period, he built the Palace of Nine Efflorescences northeast of Bronze Bird Terrace, and the next year erected Hall of Supreme Militancy at the former site of the Hall of Literary Prosperity of the Cao-​ Wei dynasty, the latter flanked by East Pavilion and West Pavilion. In this way, the main body of the palace complex came into being. On this basis, more than 400,000 laborers were solicited for building 40-​odd terraces and towers. In the end, a left–​right symmetrical innovative architectural layout took shape. These projects were not fully completed until the eighth year (342) of the Jianwu period. From that year onwards, the focus of urban construction shifted to outside the city. Construction of Hualin Garden, the largest of its kind ever built, involved 160,000 workers and 100,000 vehicles. The resultant garden and wall spread for dozens of li. Shi Hu desired to see the gardenscape before his death and lamented, “I would have no regret if I see the landscape of the garden on a morning and pass away the evening.” This large project was completed in the 13th year (347) of the Jianwu period. Later building construction in Ye received little attention because fierce conflicts arose between Shi Hu and his sons and between the sons themselves. Later Zhao’s Ye city basically adopted the layout of Cao-​Wei dynasty’s Ye city, albeit with appropriate adjustments. In particular, the Later Zhao dynasty built the Inner Court and Harem at the site of Bronze Bird Garden, built the Outer Court at the site of the Hall of Literary Prosperity, and transformed the previous Hall of Hearing Political Decisions into the Palace for the Crown Prince. Buildings in the Later Zhao dynasty were distributed more densely than in the Cao-​Wei dynasty and the overall architecture was more symmetrical than previously. The municipal markets, too, expanded on a previous basis, such as well-​recorded Jiankang Market (建康市) and Pingle Market (平乐市) located southeast of the city—​specifically, south of Jianchunmennei Street of East Gate or within Guangyang Gate. The city walls were transformed from earthworks into using brick, with city gates and towers being reconstructed. As a result, the city had strong military defense works. Also, the water supply and drainage systems were rebuilt, diverting water into Hualin Garden and branching off to irrigate various courtyards of the palaces and supply water to the Empress’ Bathroom before out-​letting through the southeast side. Later Zhao not only restored the main gardens in western and northwestern Ye of the Cao-​Wei dynasty, but also opened up Hualin Garden in the northeast, thus improving the urban environment of Ye city.

III.  City layout and structures (I)  City walls and gates The “Turbid Zhang River” chapter of The Commentary on the Waterway Classic says, “The [Ye] city was seven li long from east to west and five li wide

176  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao from south to north. The wall surface was paved with bricks and there was a tower every 100 steps.” From that point on, Ye was transformed from an earth city into a brick one. In the 1980s, archaeologists excavated the Ye site, discovering some remaining bricks at the city wall site. A tower was built every 100 steps, exactly as recorded, and the city wall is 24 li around and had 72 towers, 15 in the east, 15 in the west, 21 in the south and 21 in the north. Mozi (墨子) says, “Every 30 steps set up one observation tower (侯楼), extending four chi beyond the parapet, three chi in width, and four chi in length. It should be surrounded by wooden planking on three sides. Mud is used to conceal it, and in summer it is covered to protect it above.”11 In the Later Zhao dynasty, towers were built on the city wall, which supports Mozi’s theory by boosting ancient city-​building techniques. At the southeast corner stood Tower of East Light, with the city wall as its foundation. “The Shi clan erected Tower of East Light on the east city wall and added Mount Jinbo (金博山) onto the tower, calling them a Sky-​ Clasher (锵天).”12 There was a Buddhist monastery located beside the tower. The “Record of Shi Jilong (石季龙载记)” chapter in volume 107 of The Book of Jin says, [Shi] Tao (石韬) regaled his underlings at Tower of East Light. … For this reason, they resided in the Buddhist monastery. [Shi] Xuan (石宣) surreptitiously ordered assassins Yang Pei (杨柸), Mou Pi (牟皮), Mou Cheng (牟成), and Zhao Sheng (赵生) among others to get in along the long narrow ladder. They killed Shi Tao and went away, leaving behind swords and arrows. The “Annals of Jin (晋纪)” chapter of History as a Mirror says, in the second year (358) of the Shengping period of Emperor Mudi, (Murong) Juan dreamed that [Shi] Hu, King of Zhao, was gnawing at his arm. Therefore, Murong Jun dug out Shi Hu’s tomb, but he did not find the king’s corpse. So, Murong Jun offered a reward of 100 taels of gold to anyone who knew the whereabouts of his body. Li Tu (李菟), a woman native of Ye, informed them that she knew it and the incumbent emperor obtained Shi Hu’s corpse from under the Tower of East Light. The corpse was already stiff, but not yet rotten. The “Huan River” chapter of The Commentary on the Waterway Classic says, The Huan River turns west and its branch takes form, flowing northeast past Ye city on the south. This branch is referred to as New River. Then the rivulet runs east and splits into two branches: The first branch flows north, past Tower of East Light. In the past, Murong Jun dreamed that his arm was bitten by Shi Hu and loathed it when he woke up. The emperor secured his body and no one knew anything about it. Later a palace maid

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  177 said she knew where the corpse was really buried. Later, Murong Jun excavated under the Tower of East Light, obtaining and opening Shi Hu’s coffin. The corpse was stiff, but not yet rotten. Murong Jun cursed, “You dead barbarian! How dare you gnaw at my arm when I slip into a dream?” He asked Palace Commandant of Censors (御史中尉)13 Yang Yue (杨约) to enumerate Shi Hu’s crimes and lash his corpse. It’s the location where Shi Hu had been laid to rest. Tower of East Light was located at the southeast corner of Ye and expanded on the basis of the turret at that corner of Ye of the Cao-​Wei dynasty. In 1984, archaeologists explored the southeast corner of Ye site, discovering a foundation of rammed earth. On the north city wall stood Tower Equaling the Big Dipper putting all other buildings to shame. Such great height made it a solitary building silhouetted against the vault of an azure sky. … Palaces, halls, gatetowers, and city wall corners each had one or more towers or pavilions. The towers or pavilions feature crossbeams, uplifted tile heads, and flying eaves decorated with patterns in fine white lines. In its heyday, the tower was 60 or 70 li away from Ye and looked as lofty as a dwelling of celestial beings.14 The tower should be located in the middle of the north city wall and along the central axis of Ye city. If you look up at the Big Dipper while standing on the steps north of the Hall of Supreme Militancy, the constellation will be level with the spire of the tower, which explains why the tower is given that name. The tower can be regarded as the guardian of the Ye city. Later Zhao conducted further decoration and alteration of the seven gates erected by Emperor Wudi of Wei. The “Turbid Zhang River” chapter of The Commentary on the Waterway Classic says, “In Later Zhao, Ye city had seven gates: Zhongyang Gate (中阳门) on the due south, Guangyang Gate (广阳门) east of this gate, Fengyang Gate (凤阳门) west of it; Jianchun Gate (建春门) on the east; Guangde Gate (广德门) in the northeast, Jiu Gate (厩门) on the northwest; Jinming Gate on the west.” Zhongyang Gate, also known as Yongyang Gate (永阳门) or Changhe Gate, led north to the front gate of Greater Court palace. The Zhongyang Gate was flanked by two bronze camels. Gazetteer of the World During the Taiping Period quotes Record of Ye, “Two bronze camels are shaped like horses and one zhang long and one zhang high. Their feet look like ox-​ hooves and their tails are long as three chi. Besides, their backs resemble a saddle. The two camels stand opposite each other across the road outside the Zhongyang Gate.” Guangyang Gate east of Zhongyang Gate stood 300 m or so east of the southeast corner of Ye. The “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye” chapter of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period says, Guangyang Gate

178  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao “led north to Sima Gate.” However, archaeological excavation indicates that it is unlikely that the two gates were located along the same straight line. Actually, the street inside Guangyang Gate, which is known as Guangyangmennei Street, veered eastward. Fengyang Gate stood west of Zhongyang Gate and led north to the Palace of Nine Efflorescences. Shi Hu built the Palace of Nine Efflorescences and heavily decorated this gate. “As a result, the gate is 25 zhang high and the highest six stories support an inverted concave roof structure (反宇向阳).15 Under the structure there are two doors. Two large bronze phoenixes are mounted atop the roof and each raises its head upward, 1.6 zhang above the ground. … The gate features vermilion columns and white walls. Anyone can see the gate even seven or eight li away from Ye city.”16 The “Turbid Zhang River” chapter of The Commentary on the Waterway Classic says, “Three terraces of Fengyang Gate are opened and as high as 35 zhang. Shi Hu erected a storied tower on the cave and placed bronze phoenixes on the tower, their heads as tall as 1.6 zhang.” The term “Three terraces (三台)” should be “Two gates (二门)” and the number “35 zhang” should be “25 zhang.” Gazetteer of the World During the Taiping Period quotes Record of the Ye City, In the reign of Emperor Taizu of Wei, the streets had a Scarlet Gatetower (赤阙) and Fengyang Gate lay southwest of the city wall. There were two phoenixes on the tower, one of which later flew into the Zhang River while the feet of the other one was still chained. A local song says, Fengyang Gate blocks half the southern sky and there is a golden phoenix chirping alone on the gate. Its partner is gone and this phoenix would fly away too but for the chain locking it. This quote should be attributed to the Later Zhao dynasty. Record of Ye [Rongyuancongshu edition 榕园丛书 edited by Li Guangting (李光廷)] says, “The tower on Fengyang Gate was five-​storied and 30 zhang above the ground. There was a pair of phoenixes mounted on the tower. A phoenix flew into the river not long before Shi Hu’s dynasty started to decline. On a sunny day, the other phoenix would appear on the tower, with its feet being fastened by iron nails.” Record of Subtle Things (幽明录) says, “On the five-​ storied tower at Fengyang Gate of Ye, there were two golden phoenixes. As Shi Jilong’s reign showed signs of decline, one phoenix flew into the Zhang River.”17 The “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye” chapter of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period mentions Fengyang Gate, The Commentary on the Waterway Classic shows that it should be 25 zhang high or so, and a storied tower stood on the gate. Also, a pair of bronze phoenixes were placed on the tower and each had a head as tall as 1.6 zhang. Their size is beyond comparison and their intricacy embodies

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  179 the highest skill in the world. Over long time spans, the tower collapsed and one phoenix flew into the Zhang River. The other was tied with an iron chain. It follows that there was a native song, Fengyang Gatetower blocks half the sky and there is a phoenix chirping alone on the gate. Its partner is gone and this phoenix would fly away too but for the iron chain locking it. The “Record of Shi Jilong” chapter of The Book of Jin says, in the early Jianyuan period, “A white rainbow emerged at Altar of the Soil and Grain, passed over Fengyang Gate and soared into the southeastern sky. It hovered out there more than ten watches before vanishing.” Shi Hu disliked it and thus “closed Fengyang Gate. This gate should not be opened unless on the first day of the first lunar month of each year.” Though the above historical records are incompatible with each other. and the record in The Book of Jin sounds ridiculous, there is no denying that Fengyang Gate was a vital gate of Ye city in the Later Zhao dynasty. Shi Hu built the gate with great finesse because it would directly lead north to the harem. Because of its pivotal location, the gate witnessed most rebellions in the twilight years of the Later Zhao dynasty. According to the “Record of Shi Jilong,” The Book of Jin, Shi Zun (石遵) led his “armored troops into the city through Fengyang Gate;” “when Sun Fudu (孙伏都) led his army to attack Ran Min and Li Nong (李农), his attempt failed and the army was stationed at Fengyang Gate;” Ran Min issued an order that reads: “Any man inside or outside the city killing a barbarian will be promoted by three ranks if he is a civil official and appointed a marshal or general-​in-​chief if he is a military officer.” In any case, Fengyang Gate was the target of internal or external strife. The “Record of Later Yan (后燕录)” chapter in volume 11 of Annals of Sixteen States says, “In the tenth month of the fifth year of the Guangshi period, Fengyang Gate of Ye city was renamed Hongguang Gate (弘光门) and the city gatetower had three stories.” This record shows that the gatetower of Fengyang Gate should be three-​storied in Later Zhao. Jianchun Gate is the east gate of Ye city. Later Zhao built a barbican outside this gate in accordance with the practice of the Cao-​Wei dynasty. Archaeologists explored the barbican site, discovering that the stone bridge was first built east of the barbican in the Cao-​Wei dynasty and then rebuilt in the Later Zhao dynasty. The bridge columns are extremely noteworthy for their exquisite carving. According to volume 9 of The Commentary on the Waterway Classic, “The Huan River flows northeast past Ye city by south and is referred to as New River. Then this river runs east and splits into two branches: One branch flows north, past Tower of East Light. This branch flows past Jianchun Gate; though the stone beam of the gate is not large, the stonework is fairly elaborate. In the past, the bridge-​head was flanked by two stone columns and the coiling dragons and pedestals were carved exquisitely.

180  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao When the emperor went south in a carriage and saw the columns, he carried the columns to Pingcheng for their astonishing artistry.” The volume 13 of The Commentary on the Waterway Classic says, during the reign of Emperor Xianwen of Northern Wei, “Go east from it [the Ningxia Palace (宁先宫)] and you will find there are two stone columns. These columns were previously mounted at the stone bridge of East Gate of Shi Hu’s Ye city. The inscription indicates the columns were erected during the Jianwu period of Later Zhao and removed here thanks to their wondrous craftsmanship. I [Li Daoyuan] work as Director of Section for Sacrifices (尚书祠部郎中).18 When I and Mu Pi (穆罴) King of Yidu visited the northern suburbs, I saw the columns personally. Each side of the column is decorated with cloud pattern and winding dragons. The dragons are awe-​inspiring and intricate indeed.” Record of Ye says, “A trench flows out of Jianchun Gate,” which means that Later Zhao still used the sewage facility of the Cao-​Wei dynasty. Guangde Gate and Jiu Gate on the north wall of Ye led to the palace complex and thus were shut down at regular intervals. There is little historically recorded about the two gates. Hong Liangji said in the “Later Zhao” chapter in volume 2 of Gazetteer of Sixteen States, “According to Record of the Ye City, there were other buildings such as Carefree Tower (逍遥楼), Cloud-​ Wearing Tower (披云楼), and Hawksbill Tower (玳瑁楼). … Carefree Tower stood north of the Palace of Nine Efflorescences, Cloud-​Wearing Tower stood northeast of the palace, and Hawksbill Tower was built on the city gate.” This city gate seems to be the Jiu Gate. Jinming Gate, also known as Bai Gate,19 is the west gate of Ye city. White Tiger (白虎) embodied West in the hearts of ancient Chinese, and therefore West Gate was dubbed Bai (White) Gate. This gate was well-​built because it was near to the Three Terraces and the Palace of Nine Efflorescences and thus regarded as being of great significance. When Shi Hu and his sons went to offer sacrifice to nature or went hunting, for instance, they would leave and return through that gate. The “Record of Shi Jilong” chapter in volume 107 of The Book of Jin says, Shi Hu “ordered crown prince Shi Xuan to pray to nature and thus go on a safari. Moreover, Shi Xuan rode in a grand chariot decorated with feathers and an opulent canopy. The crown prince even held a banner of the Heaven’s Son and led Six of the Ten Armies amounting to 180,000 soldiers through Jinming Gate;” when Sun Fudu initiated a mutiny and attacked Ran Min and Li Nong, they and their troops ambushed him, “destroying Jinming Gate and getting in.” Later Zhao’s seven gates followed the layout of the previous Cao-​Wei dynasty and had a larger scale and greater strength. Besides, gatetowers were built. In this way, there were standardized city gate names and interestingly, each gate was named according to the yin-​yang doctrines, four seasons, and climatic changes in terms of direction. Judging from the following gate names—​ Guangde, Jianchun, Guangyang, Zhongyang, Fengyang, Jinming, and Jiu—​as far back as the Later Zhao dynasty, Ye city perfectly integrated the heaven or sky awareness, and especially celestial phenomena, into capital design.

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  181 (II)  Three Terraces As the Ye city was higher in the northwest and lower in the southeast, Three Terraces and Western Ye often became prioritized targets of conquest. After the Yongjia period of Western Jin, the Three Terraces were destroyed due to frequent wars. Later Zhao twice implemented reconstruction of the terraces: Shi Le “reconstructed Ye palace’ and ‘rebuilt the Three Terraces’ ” in the tenth month of the eighth year (326) of Later Zhao20 for the first time. Later Shi Hu rebuilt the terraces for the second time. For this reason, The Commentary on the Waterway Classic says, “Northwest of the city lie Three Terraces. All the terraces use the city wall as their foundations and soar into the sky, as high as mountains.” The scales of the terraces were basically finalized in the Later Zhao dynasty. Bronze Vessel Terrace (铜爵台): The “Turbid Zhang River” chapter of The Commentary on the Waterway Classic says, Bronze Bird Terrace is ten zhang high and consists of 101 houses. … Later Shi Hu renovated the terrace and made it two zhang higher than ever. A house was erected on the terrace and another house was built on this house in a circular manner. In this way, many rooms were added to the previous terrace and the channel connecting those rooms was named Grotto for Instructing My Son (命子窟). Moreover, a five-​story tower was added onto the houses and 15 zhang above the houses and 27 zhang above the ground. Also, bronze birds were made atop the tower and it looked as if they were fluttering their wings. Record of Ye says, Bronze Vessel Terrace was ten zhang high and had 120 houses piled up one by one. … In the Later Zhao dynasty, Shi Hu built a five-​storied tower on the terrace, 370 chi (suspected to actually be 270 chi) above the ground, with 120 houses on all four sides. The houses were inhabited by female superintendents and female musicians. … Two wells were dug at the Bronze Vessel Terrace and an iron beam tunnel was excavated to connect the wells and called Grotto for Instructing My Son. Many treasures were placed in the wells to please foreign guests and thus named holy wells. In addition, bronze vessels (铜爵) of 1.5 zhang high, which should in fact be bronze birds (铜雀), were placed on the spire of the tower. The birds were lifelike and it felt as if they were flying through the clouds. The “Terraces” chapter of Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters quotes Record of Ye, “Terraces were erected northwest of Ye city. Each used the city wall as its foundation. Bronze Bird Terrace stood in the middle position and

182  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao Ice Well Terrace stood to the north.” “West Terrace (Bronze Vessel Terrace) was 67 zhang (actually 27 zhang) high bronze phoenixes (actually common birds) were placed on the terrace. As soon as the sun came out, the terrace would shine brightly because each window was covered with bronze wires and a mica heavy curtain.” The above records tell us that Later Zhao mentioned Bronze Bird Terrace as Bronze Vessel Terrace of 12 zhang height, two zhang higher than in the Cao-​Wei dynasty. There was a basement built underground and called Grotto for Instructing My Son. In the center of the terrace, a five-​storied tower of 15 zhang height was built. Its overall height was 27 zhang and its spire had 1.5 zhang tall bronze birds spreading their wings to fly high. The tower was surrounded by 120 interconnected palace-​houses. These houses had four gates in all four directions and there was a corridor winding around the short wall (台墙) behind the houses. As a whole, the houses brought together terrace, corridor, and courtyard. In the last days of Later Zhao, various members of the Shi clan butchered each other and Ran Min waged a rebellion, thus bringing about great destruction of Bronze Vessel Terrace. In 1986, archaeologists excavated a square pit on the southern edge of Bronze Bird Terrace site and the following year dug another square pit, unearthing a great number of pieces of broken bricks, including a tile inscribed with characters “Hail Great Zhao (大赵万岁)” of Later Zhao.21 Those cloud-​pattern tiles and human-​face decorations are both typical of the architecture of Ye city. Archaeological evidence confirms that the southeast corner of Bronze Bird Terrace is opposite the northeast corner of Golden Phoenix Terrace. Golden Phoenix Terrace: Golden Tiger Terrace of the Cao-​Wei dynasty was renamed Golden Phoenix Terrace by Shi Hu in the Later Zhao dynasty. Record of Ye edited by Ji Yun says, “The terrace gets its name from two golden phoenixes placed on the terrace.” The “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye” chapter of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period says, “The Golden Tiger Terrace was renamed Golden Phoenix Terrace. Did it aim to avoid mentioning the character ‘tiger (虎)’ in Shi Hu’s name?” In similar fashion, Later Zhao changed White Tiger into Celestial Deer and Tiger Head into Dragon Head. However, there is no record of changing “tiger” into “phoenix.” Shi Hu believed in ill omens of things according to the five element theory because legend says phoenixes appeared in the south of Ye many times. Cao Zhi said in “A Letter of Gratitude (表),” “Recently, I heard that a phoenix appears south of Ye city and two yellow dragons emerge at the Twin Springs. This is a propitious foreboding indeed. The phoenix would perch in the forest and the dragons would be spotted in the pool. Ordinary people watch them from dawn to dusk.”22 For auspicious purposes, Shi Hu named the west gate of the southern city wall of the Palace of Nine Efflorescences as Fengyang Gate and mounted bronze phoenixes atop the gatetower; also,

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  183 he mounted a golden phoenix on the southernmost terrace. This explains the origin of the name of Golden Phoenix Terrace. According to Record of the Ye City, Shi Hu transformed the 133 rooms of the Cao-​Wei dynasty into “109 rooms.” The building layout is indicated as follows: (1) The main hall was built in the center of the terrace, with a golden phoenix placed on its top. (2) Other auxiliary halls, houses, and side-​rooms were distributed on all four sides. (3) A circular corridor stood behind the houses, with its gates opening in four directions. However, the heights of the terraces remained the same as in the Cao-​Wei dynasty. Ice Well Terrace: The “Turbid Zhang River” chapter in volume 10 of The Commentary on the Waterway Classic says, Ice Well Terrace stands in the north and is eight zhang high as well. This terrace has 145 houses and the houses have Ice Chambers, in which there are several wells. Each well is 15 zhang deep and used to store ice and charcoal. Graphite can be used in writing and some residues will be left after burning. Besides, chestnut cellars and salt cellars are dug for later use. Today the cellars still have inscriptions. Record of Ye claims that the Ice Well Terrace “has 140 houses.” Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period quotes The Commentary on the Waterway Classic, “The terrace has 145 houses.” Record of Ye also says, “The Ice Well Terrace has three Ice Chambers, all of which are connected with the Cool Hall via walkways.” The volume 12 of Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era quotes Record of Ye, “Shi Jilong hoarded ice at the Ice Well Terrace and presented ice to his courtiers in the dog days.” History shows that Ice Well Terrace should be of the same layout as Golden Phoenix Terrace. The main difference between them is that the former has some rooms below the ground surface. Silla’s capital Gyeongju also had ice cellars and now the relic site is still in sound condition, but the scale and depth pale in comparison with the wells in Ye city. Digging wells on the terrace was an ingenious invention of ancient people. If you dig a well in the flat ground, an appropriate depth should be maintained. If the depth is too small, cold storage may be ineffective; but if the depth is too great, a seepage of underground water may occur. This matter is worth considering seriously. When Shi Hu died, his corpse was placed under the Tower of East Light. Many years later his corpse “is merely petrified, but not rotten.” It is clear that well-​digging on the terrace can prevent human bodies or other things from decaying. The Three Terraces used the city walls as their foundations, and pavilions, towers, halls, and houses thereon were built and connected via walkways. In this way, those buildings on a terrace formed a whole, and all the buildings of the terraces formed a trio of front–​rear symmetry and neat distribution. So, Record of Ye says, “Three Terraces were placed in a queue, each having its main hall.” Bronze Vessel Terrace stood in the middle, Golden Phoenix

184  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao Terrace stood northward and Ice Well Terrace stood southward, with their main halls being furnished with similar articles. The emperor set up an imperial bed and put down a fine-​brocade curtain with tassels. Each of the four corners of this curtain had a solid gold dragon-​head holding five-​colored tassels in its mouth. Moreover, he set up another bed and shielded it with a gold-​hinged screen. There were 30 slender women on the bed and another 30 beside the bed. All these women were arranged for the lord’s banquets. On top of that, Record of Ye says, The Three Terraces were all brickworks and 60 steps away from each other. Walkways were built between them like pontoons and gold-​hinged; tigers and dragons among the cloud were painted. If the walkways were in service, the terraces would be connected; if not, the middle terrace would be separated from the other two terraces.23 (III)  Palace buildings and furnishings Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period says, “It is estimated that Shi Hu built nine large and small halls as well as over 40 terraces and towers. In a word, he made tremendous alterations of the palaces and halls of the Cao-​Wei dynasty.” His changes can be summed up as three points: First, he built the harem in West Garden. Second, he built the Hall of Supreme Militancy along with two side halls, behind which Cloud-​Wearing Tower and Tower Equaling the Big Dipper were erected. Third, he built the Palace for Crown Prince at the previous site of the princely palace of the Cao-​Wei dynasty. The Harem, Grand Court, Palace for Crown Prince, and those mansions of dukes and nobles were scattered to east and west. The Outer Court mainly included buildings such as Hall of Supreme Militancy, West Hall, East Hall, Tower of Dragon Ruler (御龙观), and Cloud-​ Wearing Tower. Hall of Supreme Militancy: Both the “Record of Shi Jilong” chapter of The Book of Jin and History as a Mirror argue that the hall and its two side halls were located in Xiang. Their opinions are erroneous because Hong Liangji stated clearly in Gazetteer of Sixteen States that they should be located in Ye and regarded as the main halls of Later Zhao’s court presentation. For this reason, they were also called Halls of Official Presentation (正会殿). Actually, they were situated at the site of the previous Hall of Literary Prosperity. The Commentary on the Waterway Classic says, Shi [Hu] built East and West Side Halls of the Hall of Supreme Militancy, with their pedestals consisting of textured stones from the mountain in Mount Gucheng (谷城山) in Jibei (济北). There were 500 imperial guards on regular shifts stationed under the pedestals. Each pedestal is made up

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  185 of cast bronze, decorated with gold-​painted patterns, curved columns, and downward-​pointing tiles. Also, the lord moved bronze human statues from Chang’an and Luoyang to the front side of the halls for decoration’s sake. As Tuoba Gui (拓跋珪) of Northern Wei took Ye, he moved the textured rocks used at the pedestals of Later Zhao’s Hall of Supreme Militancy to Pingcheng, where Cui Hao (崔浩) engraved the rocks with Five Classics (五经) and Record of the State (国记). The “Biographies of Wei Barbarians (魏虏传)” chapter of The Book of Southern Qi (南齐书) says, “To engrave Five Classics and Record of the State three li west of Ping[cheng], 60 rocks were carried here from the pedestals of Shi Hu’s Hall of Supreme Militancy in Ye. Each rock was more than one zhang long and later used.” The “Record of Shi Jilong” chapter of The Book of Jin says, The pedestal of each Hall of Supreme Militancy is 2.8 zhang high and paved with broken textured rocks. Under the pedestal is hidden a commodious cellar where 500 guards were stationed. Each pedestal is 75 steps long [east–​west] and 65 steps wide [south–​north]. Painted tiles, golden bells, silver pillars, golden columns, bead curtains, and jade discs make each pedestal look all the more sumptuous. Record of Ye says, Shi Hu “erected the Hall of Supreme Militancy with delicate windows. Clouds were painted on the windows so that the halls could be compared with Epang Palace (阿房宫) of Qin or Hall of Numinous Light (灵光殿) of Lu. Besides, the halls were decorated with tassels and bird feathers and a five-​colored woven mat with sedge heart were provided.”24 “In Shi Hu’s Hall of Supreme Militancy, large ribbons were hung at the crossbeam and jade discs were tied to the end of the tassels.”25 The halls would become more ceremonious each time an imperial presentation took place. Record of Ye edited by Ji Yun says, Shi Hu held an official audience at the front hall, which faced a pavilion to the south and featured a curtain with tassels. A set of codes were enacted: First, make suits as per regulations. Second, wear a sky-​reaching cap (通天冠). Third, wear the ruler’s jade seal, black suit and light red garments, paint the sun, moon, fiery dragon, green and black pattern, pheasant, and pollen. Fourth, change the carriage and suit, wear an excursion cap (远游冠), a golden boshan cap, and a gauzy red cotton coat. Fifth, at daybreak, a duke should hold a jade pendant (珪), a minister should hold a lamb, a master should hold a wild goose, and a member of the gentry should hold a pheasant as before. The court should be teeming with horse carriages, including dozens of Gold Carriages (金根) and Jade Carriages (玉辂). There would be a Gold Carriage (金根) and dozens of Jade Carriages (玉辂). “At the official presentation, Shi Hu placed white dragon goblets at the front of the halls and placed golden dragon-​mouth goblets westward

186  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao at East Side-​Room. The golden dragon goblets faced west, their mouths being gold-​ painted. Each golden dragon goblet contained 50 hu of drink.” At the official presentation, “120 branch-​ shaped iron lamps would be mounted in front of the halls.” Also, he placed six pair of torches in the flat plots before the two halls, outside Duan Gate and Changhe Gate. The torches each were 1.6 zhang high. At the official presentation, music was played. At the official presentation of Shi Hu, variety shows were performed in front of the halls, such as tightrope walking, phoenix imitation, Persian shows, and another five acrobatic shows. In particular, there was a show called forehead rod-​climbing. One player put a rod on his forehead and another player climbed onto the tip of the rod, turning to and fro like a bird. Then the second player placed another rod in his mouth and moved in similar fashion. A carriage was provided and a wood rod stood erect in the carriage, two zhang high. A crosspiece was placed atop the rod, with a player sitting on each side. The players soared like birds or turned themselves upside down. Yet another player behaved like a macaque. He jumped onto a horse, staying at one side of the horse, on the head of the horse, or at the tail of the horse while the horse was galloping the whole time. This is called ape-​or macaque-​riding.26 Moreover, the lord arranged “a band every 30 steps, and the total number of bands amounted to 30. Each band had 12 musicians standing on a flat pavilion one zhang above the ground. Besides, there were female virtuosi.”27 The official presentation, namely the spring festival gala on the first day of the first lunar month in each year, was the most important occasion for royalty. Over a long time, it had become a well-​established practice. The “Record of Music (乐志)” in volume 23 of The Book of Jin says, “Due to the revolt in Yongjia period, the world disintegrated and actors and instruments were destroyed by Liu Yuan and Shi Le.” When Shi Hu arranged an official presentation or an outing for himself or his empress, percussion and wind instruments were played. The melodies played would be the orthodox official music of the Western Jin epoch. Each Hall of Supreme Militancy boasts frescoes. According to the “Record of Shi Jilong,” The Book of Jin, “The frescoes in the Hall of Supreme Militancy portray ancient sages as barbarians. More than ten days later, all the heads of the figures shrank into their shoulders. And thus Shi Jilong detested the frescoes tremendously.” The “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye” chapter of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period delves into the Hall of Supreme Militancy, The Commentary on the Waterway Classic argues that Shi Hu erected the Hall of Supreme Militancy along with East and West Side Halls. A careful examination of the ‘Record of Shi Jilong’ chapter of The Book

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  187 of Jin indicates that Shi Hu treated his courtiers and Shi Zun took the bogus throne at the Hall of Supreme Militancy. It is the official venue for imperial presentations. As the palaces and halls of the Wei dynasty were all burnt down by Ji Sang, Shi Hu built the Hall of Supreme Militancy at the previous site of the Hall of Literary Prosperity and built two auxiliary (east and west) halls behind the main hall. Were those names like East Hall, West Hall, East Pavilion, and West Pavilion bynames for the auxiliary halls? The pedestal of the Hall of Supreme Militancy is 2.8 zhang high, 75 steps long, and 65 steps wide. As a matter of fact, it is made up of textured rocks from Mount Gucheng, Jibei. Under the pedestal lies a cellar where 500 imperial guards were stationed. All the houses feature painted tiles, golden bells, silver pillars, golden columns, bead curtains, and jade discs. Even the pedestal of each column is made of cast bronze. The windows are delicate-​looking and decorated with cloud patterns. Screens with hanging tassels and white jade bed are provided. Golden lotuses can be found atop the curtains. Moreover, five-​colored brocade mats with sedge hearts are provided. Moreover, golden dragon heads pour wine to the east side-​room of the main hall and golden goblets under the dragon mouths each contains 50 hu of wine. The goblets are located just over 100 steps away from the underpass of the palace so that wine could flow out of the feet of the dragons for enjoyment at the official presentation. Also, the kingdom offered 16 dark kylins and seven white deer. Director of Bureau of Forestry and Crafts (司虞)28 Zhang Hezhu (张曷柱) was ordered to tame these animals to drive the canopied carriage. In this way, the animals could be included in the imperial parade. Additionally, he placed a torch at the tip of each high rod. The tip of the rod boasts a height of more than ten chi; a giant torch is placed on the top plate and a man stands on the bottom plate. Using a rope, the man can get to the top of the rod. Horse Ramp (马道): Horse Ramp spread westward in front of the Hall of Supreme Militancy. According to “Record of Shi Jilong,” The Book of Jin, Shi Hu entertained all the courtiers at the Hall of Supreme Militancy. At that time, over 100 white geese gathered south of the ramp. Duan Gate stood before the Hall of Supreme Militancy. It is the front gate of Grand Court. Changhe Gate stood in front of Duan Gate and led south to Zhongyang Gate. This gate is the front gate of Grand Court. Record of Ye says, “At the official presentation, Shi Hu placed six lamps in the flat plot before the hall, outside Duan Gate and Changhe Gate (two lanterns at each site). Each lamp was 1.6 zhang high.” The “Record of Shi Jilong” chapter of The Book of Jin says, Junior Director of Construction Office (左校令)29 Chenggong Duan (成公段) made a torch at the tip of each high rod. The tip of the rod

188  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao boasts a height more than ten chi; a giant torch is placed on the top plate and a man stands on the bottom plate. Using a rope, the man can get to the top of the rod. Shi Hu tried using them and felt greatly pleased; 509 men including Grand Guardian (太保)30 Kui An (夔安) persuaded Shi Hu to give himself an honorary title and then all of them entered, with oil pouring from the torches into the lower plates. As a result, seven men were killed and Shi Hu detested the torches, executing Chenggong Duan at Changhe Gate furiously. This record shows that Duan Gate stood south of the flat plot and Changhe Gate stood south of Duan Gate. East Hall and West Hall flanking the Hall of Supreme Militancy: The “Record of Shi Jilong” chapter of The Book of Jin says that Shi Hu confined his crown prince Shi Sui to the East Palace and later pardoned him. He received the deposed crown prince at the East Hall. Hong Liangji said in the “Later Zhao” chapter of Gazetteer of Sixteen States, “When Shi Hu desired to choose the crown prince, he discussed this matter with his courtiers at East Hall.” The East Hall and West Hall seem to be annexes of the Hall of Supreme Militancy. East Pavilion: The “Record of Shi Jilong” chapter of The Book of Jin says, to execute Shi Shi (石世) and Zhang Cai (张豺), Shi Zun “ascended the Hall of Supreme Militancy, where he beat his chest in sorrow. Then he retreated into East Pavilion.” The pavilion should be located behind the hall and known as the place of the crown prince’s daily activities. West Pavilion: The “Record of Shi Jilong” chapter of The Book of Jin says, “As Shi Hu came to West Pavilion, Generals of Soaring Dragons (龙腾将军) and Imperial Guards of Soaring Dragons (龙腾中郎)31 along with more than 200 men paid homage to him. … He ordered King of Yan to join the imperial guards and take charge of soldiers and horses.” The pavilion should be situated behind the Hall of Supreme Militancy and opposite East Pavilion. Record of Ye says, When Shi Hu held a grand party, the ritual music started and Shi Hu raised the window curtains, several thousand palace women seating themselves and watching the show. All of them wore glistening gold and silver ornaments. Besides, several hundred female artists performed at the pavilion. Each wore clothes ornamented with beads and gems, danced while beating a drum, and played a zither or lute. Also, slender singing girls were arranged. The West Hall or Pavilion was the usual venue for Shi Hu. Emperor Mingdi of the Wei dynasty introduced “Supreme Ultimacy (太极) and Two Forms (二仪)” into the architecture of Grand Court. Specifically, he built the Hall of Supreme Ultimacy as Grand Court at the previous site of South Palace in Luoyang of the Eastern Han epoch, and

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  189 built East Hall and West Hall flanking the hall from behind. The Grand Court or Outer Court served decision-​making processes on major state affairs; East Hall (Routine Court) and West Hall (Daily Court) allowed the emperor to conduct matters such as reception, teaching, hearing political decisions, enacting imperial edicts, selecting generals, arranging farewell banquets, expressing condolences, and holding fasts. Since the Wei dynasty initiated East Hall and West Hall, the later Eastern Jin, Western Jin, Sixteen States, and the Southern and Norther Dynasties almost completely followed suit. For example, East Hall (Pavilion) and West Hall (Pavilion) were built flanking the Hall of Supreme Militancy in Later Zhao’s Ye palace. As Liu Dunzhen argued,32 according to layout of the Hall of Supreme Ultimacy and the Hall of Two Forms, A square or rectangular commodious court should be built north of the hall gate and surrounded by an eaved corridor (檐廊). Moreover, this court should adjoin the Hall of Supreme Ultimacy. East Hall and West Hall should nestle southward at both sides of the hall. In the Han dynasty or earlier times, the front hall served as Grand Court, with East Side-​Room and West Side-​Room being Routine Court and Daily Court respectively; but from the Wei and Jin to Southern and Northern Dynasties, Hall of Supreme Ultimacy served as Grand Court, with East Hall and West Hall being both Routine Courts. The practice of using the halls as routine courts was likely derived from the two side-​rooms of the Han dynasty. When Emperor Wendi of Sui built Daxing Palace, he used Chengtian Gate as Grand Court, with Hall of Supreme Ultimacy and Hall of Two Forms being Routine Court and Daily Court respectively. The Tang built Hall of Embracing the Primal Energy (含元殿), Hall of Spreading Political Enlightenment (宣政殿), and Hall of Purple Residence (紫宸殿) in the Dongnei (东内, a sobriquet of Daming Palace); the Song built Hall of Grand Celebration (大庆殿), Hall of Literary Virtue (文德殿), and Hall of Purple Residence; the Ming built Hall of Following the Heaven (奉天殿), Hall of Opulent Canopy (华盖殿), and Hall of Strict Self-​ Cultivation (谨身殿); the Qing built Hall of Supreme Harmony, Hall of Perfect Harmony, and Hall of Preservation of Harmony. In a word, all these dynasties aimed to revive the practice of the Zhou dynasty by laying out three halls from south to north. Tower of Dragon Ruler: The “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye” chapter of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period says, “Shi Hu built the tower in the Hall of Supreme Militancy. Record of the Ye City says, ‘It is pleasant to ascend the tower and overlook the palaces and halls below. Later Ran Min appointed soldiers to imprison Shi Jian (石鉴) on the tower and hung foods to feed him.’ ”

190  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao Cloud-​Wearing Tower: Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period says, Shi Hu built this tower north of Tower of Dragon Ruler. Record of Ye says, “North of Carefree Tower was located Cloud-​Wearing Tower. This tower adjoined halls on the south and abutted against urban areas on the north. Its well-​decorated balustrade soared into the clouds and the red crossbeams blended through the mist. For this reason, it is named Cloud-​ Wearing Tower, which reflects the building’s astonishing height.” West Zhonghua Gate and East Zhonghua Gate: The “Record of Shi Jilong” of The Book of Jin says, Shi Jian ordered Li Song (李松) and Zhang Cai (张才) to kill Ran Min and Li Nong, but his attempt failed. Then he pretended that he didn’t know their plan and executed them at West Zhonghua Gate. West Zhonghua Gate should be the west gate of Grand Court and East Zhonghua Gate should be the east gate of Grand Court. East Side Gate: The “Record of Shi Jilong” chapter of The Book of Jin says, “Sun Fudu said Ran Min, Li Nong and some others revolted; now they reached the East Side Gate. In contrast, there was a West Side Gate.” All those mentioned above are the main buildings of Outer Court. Relevant texts show that the Hall of Supreme Ultimacy should lie at the center of the layout and there should be a south–​north central axis: Duan Gate and Changhe Gate were distributed in front of this hall along the axis opposite Zhongyangmen Street; Tower of Dragon Ruler and Cloud-​Wearing Tower were distributed along the axis behind this hall, and Tower Equaling the Big Dipper on the north city wall along the axis. From north to south, Tower Equaling the Big Dipper, Cloud-​Wearing Tower, Tower of Dragon Ruler, and Hall of Supreme Militancy were distributed hierarchically. Shi Hu worshiped Heaven and named himself “Heavenly King of Great Zhao.” So, it’s not surprising that his palace architecture carries the philosophy of “heaven-​ earth connection (天地相接).” Those buildings flanking the Hall of Supreme Militancy were distributed symmetrically: West Pavilion and East Pavilion, and the West Palace (Harem in West Garden) and East Palace (Palace for Crown Prince). If you come to the Grand Court palace complex, go west along West Zhonghua Gate and you will come to the Harem. However, go east through East Zhonghua Gate and you will arrive in the Palace for Crown Prince. This symmetrical layout seems stricter than that of the Ye palace of the Cao-​Wei dynasty. Harem—​West Garden In the Later Zhao dynasty, the main buildings of the Harem were located within Bronze Vessel Garden. The buildings fall into two clusters: Three

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  191 Terraces building cluster in the west and Hall of Resplendent Yang and Palace of Nine Efflorescences building cluster in the east. Hong Liangji said in the “Later Zhao” chapter of Gazetteer of Sixteen States, “[Shi] Hu built East Palace and West Palace in Ye city. Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era quotes Records of Later Zhao, ‘In the third year of the Jianwu period, East Palace and West Palace were built.’ ” West Palace refers to the harem and East Palace refers to the mansion of the crown prince. Hall of Resplendent Yang is the front hall of Shi Hu’s harem. It stood in front of the Palace of Nine Efflorescences. Record of Ye says, “Empress Bathroom is located behind the Hall of Resplendent Yang. The bathroom is made of stones and water is diverted here from a trench outside. There is a stone bed on the pond within the bathroom.” Xianyang Gate appears to be the front gate of the Hall of Resplendent Yang. The “Biography of Fo Tucheng (佛图澄传)” chapter in volume 9 of Biographies of Eminent Monks (高僧传), “Legend says there was a monster horse. It felt as if the horse’s mane and tail had been burnt. This horse entered Zhongyang Gate and left Xianyang Gate.” Palace of Nine Efflorescences: According to Stories of the Ye Capital, “This palace is located northeast of Bronze Vessel Terrace. Shi Hu built the palace in the autumn of the first year of the Jianwu period. The hall is given this name because it was built according to the trigram kun composed of nine lines. Shen Yue wrote in a poem, It shines upon the Three Terraces while I meander in the Palace of Nine Efflorescences.”33 The “Record of Shi Jilong” chapter of The Book of Jin says, Shi Hu built East Palace and West Palace in Ye city. Also, he built Arcane Phoenix Terrace behind the Hall of Resplendent Yang and selected girls from gentry and common people to let them reside on the terrace. The Back Court had more than 10,000 women, all of whom wore silk clothes and enjoyed rarities. Female officials at 18 levels were assigned to teach astrology, horsemanship, and archery. A female Astrologer was assigned to gaze at propitious and unpropitious signs in the celestial sphere to check the authenticity of Outer Grand Astrologer’s observations. In addition, female drum-​beaters, female wind instrumentalists, female guards, female acrobats, and craftswomen were arranged in contrast to their male counterparts in the Outer Court (外宫, namely the Royal Court). The palace consisting of nine halls was named after the kun, which is considered one of the eight trigrams and consists of nine lines. Each hall had a gatetower and courtyard. The nine halls along with their annexes, Hall of Resplendent Yang, Arcane Wind Terrace, Carefree Tower, and Hall of Reaching the Clouds (凌霄殿) form the Harem.

192  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao Hall of Jade Splendor (琨华殿): The “Record of Shi Jilong” chapter of The Book of Jin says, Shi Jian killed Shi Zun at the Hall of Jade Splendor. Later on, Shi Jian ordered Li Song and Zhang Cai to kill Ran Min and Li Nong, but his attempt failed. Record of Ye says, “West of Shi Hu’s Hall of Supreme Militancy stood the Hall of Jade Splendor. The passage on the pavilion of this hall had no walls but large windows; these windows were always open and covered with crimson curtains.”34 Hall of Faint Twilight (晖华殿): In the first year (349) of the Taining period of Later Zhao, a storm hit Ye, uprooting trees. Besides, there were flashes of lightning and a blizzard of sleet. Hall of Supreme Militancy, Hall of Faint Twilight and other halls were set ablaze by lightning. Their gates, towers, and pavilions were no longer out there; half of the carriages and garments were burnt down; even metal and stone objects were gone. The great fire lasted more than a month before it went out.35 Hall of Golden Brilliance (金华殿) and Empress Bathroom: Record of Ye says, Behind the Hall of Golden Brilliance stood Empress Bathroom, which consists of three rooms with uplifted tile heads, hidden brackets, and opulent carvings. On the eighth day of the fourth month, nine dragons ejected water to bath Sakyamuni, the Crown Prince of Kapilavastu. As the water was diverted from the trench in front of the Hall of Supreme Militancy, each time the empress wanted to take a bath, the bronze net would be raised; then coarse linen and finally cotton would be used six or seven steps away to cut off the water supply. Also, a jade plate would be mounted to contain ten hu of water. At the same time, bronze turtles would be mounted to drain away the dirty water. Then the water flowed out and into the mansions of the princesses. Empress Bathroom behind the Hall of Golden Brilliance had a pair of evergreen trees. The trees [took root under the bathhouse and] sprout branches above the roof beams. [Actually, the trees were planted prior to construction of the house. Later a jade plate was added to contain ten hu of water between the trees.] The leaves are as large as human palms and burst into blossom in the eighth and ninth months. The blossoms are white and the fruit is red and as big as an acorn in size. The fruit is not edible and people said they are the immortal trees of West Queen Mother.36 Apart from these three halls, the remaining halls of the palace are all beyond investigation. In 1976/​ 7, cultural relics researchers excavating an

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  193 area northeast of the present-​day Bronze Bird Terrace site, discovered large stretches of Later Zhao’s cultural layer 4–​4½ m below the ground surface. In addition, a tile inscribed with characters “Hail Great Zhao” was unearthed. The place where it was found might be the site of the remains of the Palace of Nine Efflorescences.37 Arcane Wind Terrace (灵风台): Shi Hu erected this terrace behind the Hall of Resplendent Yang. The “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye” chapter of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period says, “In the Yuanyou period of the Song dynasty, a ruined tower pedestal stood behind the pedestal of Hall of Resplendent Yang. Was it the past site of Carefree Tower and Arcane Wind Tower? Did these two names refer to the same tower?” A review of relevant literature shows that it should be the site of Arcane Wind Terrace. Celestial Terrace (灵台): Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era quotes Records of Later Zhao, “Shi Hu assigned a female Astrologer (太史)38 to observe celestial propitious and unpropitious signs to check the authenticity of Outer Astrologer’s (外太史)39 observations. Everyone is prohibited from learning astrology privately anywhere within the state unless allowed by the emperor.” This terrace seems to be the Arcane Wind Terrace. Ancient palace layout stipulates that the terrace should be located in the southeast side of the harem, but it was located in the center of the harem in the Later Zhao dynasty. Carefree Tower: Record of the Ye City says, “North of the Palace of Nine Efflorescences lay Carefree Tower. This tower was sandwiched between the palace and the Zhang River. It was an ideal place for anyone to look out at the scenery or relax amidst the beauty of its natural setting.”40 As the most northward building of the harem, this tower stood fairly close to the north city wall. Tower of Reaching the Clouds: This tower is the same as the Hall of Reaching the Clouds. The “Record of Shi Jilong” of The Book of Jin says, in the ninth month of the 13th year of the Jianwu period of Later Zhao, Shi Hu ordered his crown prince Shi Xuan to offer sacrifices to nature, and the crown prince had a ceremonious parade. Surprisingly, 180,000 soldiers walked out of Jinming Gate in an impressive manner. Shi Hu overlooked the parade from the Hall of Reaching the Clouds, smiling, “My crown prince has such an impressive parade.” The volume 279 of Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era mentions a similar record in Tales of Ye, As soon as the Tower of Reaching the Clouds was completed in the third year of the Yonghe period of Emperor Mudi of the Eastern Jin [the 13th year of the Jianwu period of the Later Zhao], Shi Hu let his son Shi Xuan pray to nature and this crown prince took a tour in an imperial carriage with feather decorations and an opulent canopy. His parade, which included Six of the Ten Armies and 180,000 soldiers, held a Heaven’s Son streamer leaving Jinming Gate. It seems that the tower was built near to Dongxi Boulevard and Jinming Gate in the 13th year of the Jianwu period of the Later Zhao.

194  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao As-​You-​Will Tower (如意观): The “Record of Shi Jilong” chapter of The Book of Jin says, “Ran Min sent 30 armored soldiers, catching Shi Zun at As-​ You-​Will Tower and killing him at the Hall of Jade Splendor.” Hong Liangji said in the “Later Zhao” chapter of Gazetteer of Sixteen States, “Ran Min ordered Su Yan (苏彦) and Zhou Cheng (周成) to catch Shi Zun at South As-​You-​Will Tower.” According to Record of the Ye City, “Tower of Dragon Ruler, Tower of Showcasing Militancy, Tower of Reaching the Clouds, and As-​You-​Will Tower were all getaways where Shi Hu visited, unwound, or prepared banquets.” The “South As-​You-​Will Tower” should be located on the Golden Phoenix Terrace and close to the Hall of Jade Splendor. Pepper House: The volume 135 of Excerpts of Books in the Northern Hall quotes Record of Ye, “Shi Hu mixed pepper and silt and coated the walls with this mixture. For this reason, the house is called a Pepper House.” Palace of Eternal Peace (永安宫): The “Later Zhao” chapter of Gazetteer of Sixteen States says, “[Shi] Hu slept in the Palace of Eternal Peace in the daytime and dreamed that a flock of sheep arrived from northeast, carrying some fish. The palace stood in northeastern Ye city and over one zhang high. On the palace, there were many wooden brackets.” The palace seems to be a grand building of the harem. Middle Terrace (中台): The “Record of Shi Jilong” chapter of The Book of Jin says, “Shi Hu burnt his crown prince Shi Xuan in northern Ye and ascended the Middle Terrace to watch the whole process following Second-​ Rank Concubines and several thousand people.” The terrace should be Bronze Vessel Terrace of the Three Terraces. Hong Liangji recorded in the “Later Zhao” chapter of Gazetteer of Sixteen States, “Hall of Holy Longevity (圣寿堂) features 800 jade-​ ornamented columns.” Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era quotes anonymity’s Record of the Ye City, The Hall of Holy Longevity was built by Shi Hu. In the hall, there were endless ornaments such as 800 jade pendants hanging down from the hall, 20,000 large and small mirrors, and clove powder pills. Also, the hall had small bells hanging on all four sides. The number of bells amounted to 10,000 and thus their pealing could be heard even 30 li away from Ye. The Hall of Holy Longevity lay in the palace of South Ye City during the Eastern Wei and Northern Qi dynasties. Attachment: The famous artifacts of Ye palace of Later Zhao are indicated as follows: Shi Hu’s Royal Bed and Small Jade Bed: Record of Ye says, “Shi Hu mounted an imperial bed [in the main hall] and reserved a distance of three zhang. In contrast, all other beds were six cun high. In a side compound of the harem, there was a small jade bed [and a rotating chair (转关床). As soon as any bird or beast comes within range, he could change the direction instantly to shoot it.]”41

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  195 Shi Hu’s Curtains for Four Seasons: Record of Ye says, Shi Hu’s imperial bed occupied a space as large as three zhang. In winter months, the lord put down a fine-​brocade curtain with tassels. Each of the four corners of this curtain had a pure gold dragon-​head holding five-​colored tassels in its mouth. Of course, there were other options like coarse green silk, polished brocade, coarse yellow silk, Boshan pattern brocade, coarse purple silk, Greater [Light] Brocade, and Lesser [Light] Brocade. Multiple curtains (复帐) were made using 120 jin of fine cotton (房子绵) as lining and white thick silk as covering. Each of the four corners of this curtain was furnished with a pure gold/​silver open work censer, in which the charcoal is used to burn rare incense. Besides, there was a golden lotus atop the curtain. A purse was woven using golden foils and hung in the lotus flower. This purse had a volume of three sheng and contained [exotic] perfume. All in all, there were 12 perfume purses of the same color on all four sides of the curtain (the purses were smaller, and a 100 zhang long rope jointed by jade disks was used to support the curtain). In spring or autumn, he simply used the brocade curtain covered with five-​colored thick silk. In summer, he used the [single-​layer] gauze curtain, red gauze and fine silk curtain or crepe yarn curtain.42 Shi Hu’s Mat: Record of Ye says, Making a mat for Shi Hu entailed a series of steps: First, wrap five kinds of perfumes with gold and mix with five-​colored wires. Second, weave a mat surface with sedge and trim it with brocade. Shi Hu’s imperial seat must be covered with a mat with sedge heart.43 Shi Hu’s Mattress: Record of Ye says, “Shi Hu made a mattress as long as [three] zhang and rimmed with brocade.”44 Shi Hu’s Table: Record of Ye says, “Shi Hu’s imperial table is a lacquerwork decorated with flowers in five colors.”45 Shi Hu’s Mirrors: Record of Ye says, “Shi Hu’s mirrors were placed at the Three Terraces and the Harem. One mirror even has a diameter of three chi (or five chi). The bottom of the mirror is decorated with pure gold intertwined dragons. As a result, several jin gold has been used.”46 Shi Hu’s Fans: Record of Ye says, Shi Hu made a moon-​shaped Monan fan (莫难扇) foiled with gold and inlaid with mica. Pure gold is forged into a sheet as thin as a cicada’s wing, which is the fan-​body. Both sides of the fan are lacquered with fairies, rare birds, and beasts in various colors. A three or five cun spacing is opened up in the center according to the fan size. A mica is inserted into the small space and thin threads of silk are added so that the more or less hidden pattern may look vivid and it feels as if you could take it out and study it carefully. Therefore, it is easy to take up the fan for closer

196  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao study; the word “easy” here explains why the fan is named Monan. When Shi Hu went out, he always rode in a carriage, his mica fan being held by the sedan. An ivory peach twig fan was his another favorite. The bamboo pattern on the fan may be dark green, magnolia, cyanotic, or tulip.47 Shi Hu’s Censers: The “Censer: Part VIII (香炉第八)” chapter in volume 25 of Writings for Elementary Instruction quotes Record of Ye, “In winter months, Shi Hu put down a multiple curtain and the curtain’s four corners each had a pure gold or silver openwork censer.” This censer is a ritual vessel. Lu Chen wrote in Rules on Sacrifice (祭法), “Censers are placed beside each seat of the Shrine of Four Seasons.” Xu Yuan (徐爰) also said in Family Instruction (家仪), “When fetching the bride, two bronze censers should be placed before the carriage.” Shi Hu’s Robe: Record of Ye says, “Shi Hu sat in the front hall, presiding over a meeting. He wore a [red] cotton robe.”48 Shi Hu’s Screens: Record of Ye says, “Shi Hu made silver-​and-​gold-​hinged screens and covered them with white thick silk. On the screens, martyrs, fairies, birds, and beasts were portrayed. Inscription on each screen features 32 characters. The height of such screens varies from eight chi to six chi and four chi. The number is changed on an ad hoc basis.”49 Bronze Bells: Record of Ye says, “There were four big bronze bells resembling the duo (铎). Each bell was as tall as 2.8 zhang. The largest face was 1.2 zhang wide and the smallest face was seven chi wide. Dragons, birds or beasts were painted, encircling around the faces of the bells.”50 Royal Foods in Plates on a Rotary Table (御食游盘): Record of Ye says, When Shi Hu conducted a audience, royal foods were provided by offering plates on a two-​ring rotary table. Each plate is inlaid with gold and silver and the total number of them was almost 120. There is a cornelian pattern between the gold and silver inlays. The cornelian is painted so delicately that you can’t see it unless you get close enough. If any plate is nudged, it will rotate in its own right.51 Bell Racks, Nine Dragons (九龙), Bronze Statues (翁仲), Bronze Camels (铜驼), and Supernatural Creatures of a Deer Head and Bird Body (飞廉): According to “The Record of Shi Jilong,” The Book of Jin, Shi Hu ordered General of the Banner Gate (牙门将),52 Zhang Mi (张弥), to dismantle Bell Racks, Nine Dragons, Bronze Statues, Bronze Camels, and Supernatural Creatures of a Deer Head and Bird Body in Luoyang and transport them to Ye city. In this process, four-​wheel tracked vehicles were used, their track being four chi wide and two chi deep. Moreover, a ship with a load of 10,000 hu goods was built for transportation via water. As soon as a large bell fell into the river, 300 sailors jumped into water and tied it to bamboo ropes. Then the bell was dragged out using

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  197 100 oxen as well as winches and carried to Ye. The Bronze statues were actually 12 bronze men cast by the First Qin Emperor; ten bronze men were destroyed by Dong Zhuo and the remaining two bronze men were transported to Ye by Shi Hu. White Dragon Goblet, Golden Dragon Goblet, Iron Lamp, and Torches are all famous objects of the Hall of Supreme Ultimacy. According to Record of Ye, Shi Hu had clothes and articles such as an emerald gauze robe (碧纱袍), gold wire-​woven cap (金镂织成合欢帽), gold wire-​woven trousers (金镂合欢袴), and hunting sedan (猎辇). In his young days, Shi Hu liked hunting. And later he grew up and became strong-​built, and he did not ride his horse anymore, but rode in a hunting sedan carried by 20 men, like the sedan used today. The lord placed a crank parasol above the sedan and placed a rotary chair on the seat. As soon as any bird or beast came within range, the chair would instantly turn to that direction. In this case, a marksman like Shi Hu would definitely shoot it.”53 Also, Shi Hu asked his Censor Xie Fei (解飞) to make a compass carriage (指南车), distance-​ measuring carriage (司里车), husking carriage (舂车), milling carriage (磨车), and hulling carriage (檀车). Record of Ye says, Xie Fei was an ingenious worker in Shi Hu’s reign. He had the knack of making hulling carriages. A stone mill was placed on the hub of the left wheel and a pestle was placed on the hub of the right wheel. In this way, each time the carriage travelled for ten li, one shi of wheat would be milled or one hu of rice would be hulled. Shi Hu had a compass carriage and a distance-​measuring carriage. Also, he had a husking carriage with a wooden man and a treadle-​operated pestle. As the cart moved, the wooden man would treadle the pestle to husk rice. When the distance of ten li was reached, one hu of rice would be discharged. On top of that, he had a milling carriage. A stone mill was placed on the cart and when the distance of ten li was travelled, one hu of wheat would be milled. All such carriages were vermilion-​painted. A general alone was needed. When the carriage started, the machines would operate and when the cart stopped, they would stop too. These clever pieces of equipment were made by Palace Censor (中御史)54 Xie Fei and Wei Meng (魏猛) of Shangfang (尚方). Shi Hu superstitiously believed in Buddhism and indulged in various kinds of extravagance. For instance, one official made a hulling carriage that was two zhang long and more than one zhang wide. With four wheels, the carriage had a seated golden Buddha. There were nine dragons spurting out water to pour over the Buddha. Besides, a wooden Taoist statue touched the Buddha’s belly with his hand; more than

198  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao ten wooden Taoists in Buddhist robes walked around the Buddha, each being more than two chi tall. When any Taoist came face to face with the Buddha, he would clench his hands to greet the Buddha and pick up sticks of incense and put them into the censer in front of the Buddha. Indeed, they looked no different from true humans. When the carriage moved, the wooden Taoists would move and the dragon would eject water. But when the carriage stopped, they would stop too. It was also created by Xie Fei.55 Xie Fei’s distance-​measuring carriage is an ingenious vehicle. There was a wooden man and a drum on the carriage. Each time the vehicle travelled one li, the wooden man who held the stick tightly would beat the drum once. There were four different kinds of gears linked as the transmission. As the wheels turned 100 circles (one li), the last gear would poke the stick to beat the drum. Afterwards, this vehicle fell into the hands of Former Yan and was taken into Chang’an when Ye was subjugated by Former Qin. In the end, Liu Yu (刘裕) conquered Chang’an and brought it back to the Jiangnan region (江南). Shi Hu’s Carriages: Record of Ye says, “Shi Hu had several hundred rotary canopied light chariots (徘徊武刚辇) deployed in the southern suburbs [of Ye]. Each chariot was driven by horses and carried four persons.” “Shi Hu had gold-​foiled carriages driven by horses in the southern suburbs. Each chariot carried four persons.” Shi Hu had several hundred gold carriages, mica carriages, and canopied light chariots. When his empress went out, she would ride in a mountain carriage (嵩路辇), civil or military jade-​decorated carriage (文武玉路辇), or vermilion-​painted sleeping carriage (朱漆卧辇). The carriages used mica instead of cotton so that she could see anything from any direction inside.56 Phoenix Edict: Record of Ye says, Shi Hu and his empress made an imperial edict on the tower. Shi Hu wrote on a sheet of five-​colored paper and put it into the mouth of a phoenix. Then the phoenix held the edict. A servant released a long red rope tying the phoenix through a winch. As the winch rotated, the phoenix flew down delivering the edict. Therefore, the edict was dubbed a ‘phoenix edict.’ It is noteworthy that the phoenix was made of wood and lacquered with five colors. Its beak and feet were painted with gold.57 The harem had Palace Wardrobe (中尚方御府)58 and the Palace Wardrobe had Weaving Bureau (织成署) that produced a great diversity of textiles for the sake of Shi Hu’s extravagant enjoyment. Record of Ye says, “Shi Hu’s imperial storehouse had rugs with rooster-​head pattern, rugs with deer young pattern, and rugs with floral pattern;” “Weaving Bureau came under the administration of a Palace Attendant-​in-​Ordinary.

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  199 Brocade types included Greater Denggao (大登高), Lesser Denggao (小登高), Greater Bright Light (大明光), Lesser Bright Light (小明光), Greater Boshan (大博山), Lesser Boshan (小博山), Greater Cornel (大茱萸), Lesser Cornel (小茱萸), Greater Entwined Dragons (大交龙), Lesser Entwined Dragons (小交龙), Grape Pattern Brocade (蒲桃文锦), Spot Pattern Brocade (班文锦), Phoenix Pattern Brocade (凤凰锦), Rosefinch Pattern Brocade (朱雀锦), Sword Pattern Brocade (韬文锦), Peach Kernel Pattern Brocade (桃核文锦), Green Thick Silk (青绨), White Thick Silk (白绨), Yellow Thick Silk (黄绨), Green Thick Silk (绿绨), Purple Thick Silk (紫绨), and Shu Thick Silk (蜀绨). There were too many kinds of craft artworks to enumerate here.”59 The weaving technique was originated from the Western Regions. Later Zhao mastered this technique indeed, which allowed the dynasty to produce rugs and brocade. The dynastic weavers should include some from the Western Regions. Record of Ye edited by Huang Huixian includes records of Shi Hu’s wife, palace maids, and imperial guards. Shi Hu’s wife: “Chen Kui (陈逵), titled Duke of Guangling, has a sister whose talent and beauty are beyond comparison. In particular, she wears hair as long as seven chi. Shi Hu made her his wife.” Shi Hu’s Palace Maids: “Shi Hu got more than 10,000 beautiful women through conquest and made them all his palace maids. Those talented ones were selected as eight female Imperial Secretaries (尚书)60 and some female Directors (侍中纳言).61 Secretarial Receptionists (门下通事)62 wrote or drafted imperial documents on the desk decorated with jade ornaments.” “Moreover, Shi Hu had dozens of palace maid-​servants who wore menial garments and holy caps, the latter of which look like the present-​day ritual cap.” “When Shi Hu’s empress went out, female musicians followed her playing drums and stringed instruments. All of them served as imperial secretaries and wore brocade trousers and jades.” “Shi Hu’s empress usually went out along with a parade of 1,000 horsewomen. In winter, all cavalry women wore purple silk ribbon scarves, Shu brocade trousers, gold ring openwork ribbons, and five-​colored woven boots and held an orpiment-​brimmed bow in the hand.” Obviously, the five-​colored woven boots were made of five-​colored silk or cotton. Extension of Examples of Refined Usage (广雅) says, the boots were woven using Sindhu’s fine silk. But Sketch of Wei argues, “Rome (大秦) made excellent boots using water wool, wooden skin, or wild silk. When such boots were introduced into the Western Regions and finally into the Central China, Chinese imitated this kind of footwear.” Shi Hu’s Imperial Guards: “Shi Jilong arranged 10,000 imperial guards around him. All of them wore five-​colored intricate armor, which shimmered brightly.” Rituals and Customs of Ye: Record of Ye also reflects rituals and festival customs like road god sacrificing, Cold Food Festival, and naming taboos.

200  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao Shi Hu’s Road God Sacrificing (祖腊): Shi Hu offered dried meat to the Ancient Temple on the chen (辰) day and worshiped his ancestors on the zi (子) day. On that day, five immortals were erected in the flat plot before the hall. Each immortal was as tall as several zhang and protected by a five-​colored canopy. At a grand presentation, courtiers worshiped the ancestors in the Hall of Supreme Militancy. Some had hundreds of pieces of silk, some had dozens of pieces of silk, and some just had earth. Shi Hu was convulsed with laughter at this. Cold Food Festival: Bingzhou custom holds that Jie Zitui (介子推) was burnt to death on the fifth day of the fifth month, and thus the day was chosen to commemorate him. As a matter of fact, this so-​called origin of the festival is erroneous. At the wu (午) clock of the fifth day of the fifth month, northern people make food and offer it to the god. Besides, five-​colored engraved new plates with dishes are presented. These foods and dishes had been air-​dried 100 days and offered to the native god instead of Jie Zitui. “According to the custom of Ye, people should eat cold food for three days after 105 days from the winter solstice. The dried porridge is now called solid food (糗).” “As a rule, people eat cold food such as rice and wheat mixed with apricot kernels for three days.” Sun Chu (孙楚) said in Eulogy of Jie Zitui (祭子推文), “A plateful of steamed millet and two yufuls of rice and wheat mixed with apricot kernels are offered. That’s the well-​established custom.” Shi Hu’s Naming Taboos: “Shi Hu’s naming taboos dominated Ye. White Tiger Streamer (白虎幡) was called Celestial Deer Streamer (天鹿幡);” “tiger-​ head leather bag (虎头鞶囊) was called dragon-​head leather bag;” “Shi Hu dictated that the character le (勒) in bridle (马勒) was a taboo and it should be called pei (辔); similarly, luole (罗勒) was renamed xiangcai (香菜);” “Shi Hu prohibited anyone from using the character hu and thus barbarian products like hu cake (胡饼), hu coriander (胡荽) and hu bean (国豆) were renamed ma cake (麻饼), xiang coriander (香荽), and state bean (国豆) respectively.” Altar of the Soil and Grain and Ancestral Temple: Later Zhao built the Altar of the Soil and Grain and Ancestral Temple in its capital Ye. According to the layout of “Ancestral Temple to the Left and Altar of the Soil and Grain to the Right” in Record of Trades, the altar should be located southwest of the Ye palace. Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era quotes Records of Later Zhao, In the tenth year of the Jianyuan period, a white rainbow emerged at Altar of the Soil and Grain, passed over Fengyang Gate, and soared into the southeastern sky. It hovered out there more than ten watches before vanishing. And thus Shi Hu closed Fengyang Gate. This gate should not be opened unless on the first day of the first lunar month of each year.”63

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  201 This quote indicates that the capital of Later Zhao had the altar. More clearly, the altar stood southwest of the Ye palace and west of Fengyangmen Avenue. Otherwise, the rainbow could not have “passed over Fengyang Gate and soared into the southeastern sky.” In 1988, archaeologists excavated a square pit about 50 m south of the northern bank of the Zhang River northeast of Yezhen village, discovering the site of Fengyangmen Avenue and unearthing a tile inscribed with characters “Hail Great Zhao.” A comparison of the discovery with relevant historical record shows that it is the location of the Altar of the Soil and Grain and the tile should belong to this altar. Ancestral Temple: The Ancestral Temple of the Shi Clan should be located southeast of the Hall of Supreme Militancy as per the practice of the Cao-​ Wei dynasty. Palace for Crown Prince—​East Palace The Palace for Crown Prince was built at the previous site of the Inner Court of the Cao-​Wei dynasty. This palace is also called East Palace because it lay east of the Hall of Supreme Militancy. Hong Liangji said in the “Later Zhao” chapter of Gazetteer of Sixteen States, “Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era quotes Records of Later Zhao, ‘Shi Hu confined the crown prince Shi Sui to the East Palace.’ ” The layout of this palace is beyond investigation because there is little relevant record. (IV)  Government offices Government offices of Later Zhao’s capital—​Ye city were mainly distributed outside Duan Gate of the Hall of Supreme Militancy and at both sides of Zhongyangmen Street. However, there is no historical record of their specific locations. Even those sporadic records just mention them as depicting other events. The known government offices are as follows: Hall of Spreading Light in the Mansion of Defender-​in-​Chief: The volume 120 of Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era quotes Records of Later Zhao, In the fourth month of the 14th year of Jianwu period, Shi Tao (石韬), titled Duke of Qin, built Hall of Spreading Light (宣光殿) inside the mansion of Defender-​in-​Chief. The crossbeam was as long as nine zhang. Crown prince [Shi] Xuan saw the hall and expressed his disgust at it. What’s more, he executed the workers and cut off the crossbeam before his departure. Shi Tao was furious and extended the crossbeam to ten zhang. When Shi Xuan heard the news, he felt greatly angered. Judging from this quote, the mansion should be located nearby the Palace for Crown Prince. The crown prince harbored hatred towards his brother defender-​in-​Chief and the two brothers engaged in fierce infighting because

202  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao the Mansion of Defender-​in-​Chief was even more impressive than the Palace for Crown Prince. (V)  Streets and lanes In terms of the Ye city’s street layout, Later Zhao largely followed in the footsteps of the Cao-​Wei dynasty: (1) Three south–​north roads north of Dongxi Boulevard. (2) Five south–​north roads south of Dongxi Boulevard. All the main streets were straight lines, except Fengyangmen Avenue. In 1988, archaeologists dug a square pit northeast of Yezhen village, discovering two road surfaces of Fengyangmen Avenue: The lower road surface was built in the late Eastern Han epoch and Cao-​Wei dynasty and used until the Sixteen States. The upper road surface was built and used in the Eastern Wei and Northern Qi. Each road surface was about 13 m wide, being flanked by two trenches of 0.6–​1 m width and 0.55–​1.1 m depth. A strongly built wall foundation lay east of the road. This foundation should have been built by Murong Nong (慕容农) of Later Yan. Relevant literature indicates that Fengyangmen Avenue should directly lead southward to Fengyang Gate and northward to Xianyang Gate of Inner Court. However, excavation shows that the avenue turned east near the south city wall and turned south about 40 m away. There was a gap in the city wall foundation and broken bricks and tiles were discovered. It is the site of Fengyang Gate. Overall, archaeological investigation confirms the direction of Fengyangmen Avenue and fills in the missing information of the historical literature. Archaeologists also unearthed a city gate underground, east of Fengyang Gate site. Also, a street or road site was discovered. Neither the underground gate nor the street was mentioned in the ancient literature.64 This gate with a vault roof is made up of bricks and is hidden underground. It is more than 3 m in width and about 4 m in height. There was a ramp at 20° heading more than 50 m north of the gate. The entrance of this gate was located within the city and flush with the ground surface back then; in contrast, the exit was located outside and lower than the ground surface. A pair of axial stones flanked the gate; an enclosed water drainage stood under this gate, leading about 4 m southward into the moat outside the city wall. So, it was a hidden gate as well as a drainage culvert. It seems that this gate was built in the Later Zhao dynasty. Also, a stretch of road surface was discovered north of the hidden gate. It is recorded that there was an imperial street. The “Record of Fu Jian” chapter of The Book of Jin says, Xu Tong (徐统) of Gaoping (高平) is a great judge of men. When he came across Fu Jian (苻坚) on the road, he felt greatly surprised, holding his hand and saying, “Little Fu, this street is the imperial street. How dare you play here? Are you not afraid of Metropolitan Commandant (司隶)?”65 Fu Jian (苻坚) replied, “The commandant will tie up criminals, but not arrest a playing child like me.”

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  203 The imperial street where the young Fu Jian (苻坚) played would be Zhongyangmen Avenue. There are also some markets recorded in history, such as Pingle Market and Jiankang Market. The two markets were exclusive markets and engaged in different kinds of products. Pingle Market: Shi Zun along with his men, armored and well-​weaponed, entered Fengyang Gate of Ye. As soon as he arrived at the front Hall of Supreme Militancy, he claimed himself emperor and executed Zhang Cai in Pingle Market. This market mainly engaged in routine articles such as salt, iron, and foods. Jiankang Market: The “Record of Shi Jilong” chapter of The Book of Jin says that in the last days of Later Zhao, Shi Kun (石琨), titled King of Ruyin, went to Ran Min along with his wife and concubines and all of them were killed in Jiankang Market by Ran Min. This market mainly engaged in selling goods from the south. Ye city had an administrative system quarter, but most quarter names have fallen into oblivion. What we know today is just Yonggui Quarter. Yonggui Quarter: The “Record of Fu Jian (符坚载记)” of The Book of Jin (晋书) says, His grandfather Fu Hong (符洪) moved to Ye following Shi Jilong (Jilong 季龙 is the style name of Shi Hu) and settled in Yonggui Quarter. His mother, surnamed Gou, constantly toured the Zhang River and worshiped the Shrine for Ximen Bao to ask for a baby. That night she dreamed of having sex with the deity of the shrine and got pregnant. In the 12th month, Fu Jian (苻坚) was born. Yonggui Quarter was likely located near Zhongyangmen Street. In the Later Qin, Yao Qiang (姚羌) built a quarter of the same name in Chang’an and resided in that quarter. Also, he “built a stupa in Yonggui Quarter.”66 Hence, there should also be a stupa in Yonggui Quarter of Later Zhao. (VI)  Other buildings Other buildings are mentioned in historical records, but their locations are unknown. Judging from their backgrounds, these buildings should be located within Ye city. Imperial School of Ye Palace (邺宫学馆): According to the “Record of Shi Jilong,” The Book of Jin, Shi Hu ordered Erudites of the National University (国子博士)67 to go to Luoyang to transcribe stone sutras and proofread Chinese translations with officials of the Palace Library. Nie Xiong (聂熊), granted Chancellor of the Directorate of Education (国子祭酒),68 annotated Guliang’s Traditions of the Spring and Autumn Annals (榖梁春秋) and listed his annotations in the Imperial School.

204  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao Exotic Shrine (胡天): The “Record of Shi Jilong” chapter of The Book of Jin says, “General of Prancing Dragons (龙骧将军)69 Sun Fudu and Liu Zhu (刘铢) plotted with 3,000 Jie warriors to ambush Ran Min and Li Nong at Exotic Shrine.” This shrine is a venue where Mazdaists offered sacrifices. Jie people originated from the Western Regions and thus believed in Mazdaism. This explains why the venue was built in Ye. It is given this name because the religion was introduced from elsewhere in the world. The shrine should be located in or nearby the harem. White Horse Temple (白马寺): The “Biography of Miao (僧妙传)” of Continued Biographies of Eminent Monks (续高僧传) says, “In the autumn years of the Wuping period of Northern Qi, Ye city had a White Horse Temple. It should be built by Fo Tucheng during the Later Zhao dynasty.” White Horse Stupa: The “Biography of Gao Yan (高俨传)” in volume 12 of The Book of Northern Qi (北齐书) says, “There is a White Horse Stupa located in the North Ye City. It was built by Shi Hu for Fo Tucheng.” Tianle Temple (天乐寺): Shi Hu built this temple for Fo Tucheng, an eminent monk from the Western Regions. Later Zhao revered him as “state master” and built this temple for him. This temple should be located in the southern part of Ye city. Zhong Temple (中寺) and Yegong Monastery (邺宫寺): The “Biography of Fo Tucheng” chapter in volume 9 of Biographies of Eminent Monks, says that Shi Hu renovated the previous pagoda in Linzhang, and Fo Tucheng lived in “Zhong Temple in Ye city” and later passed away in “Yegong Monastery.” (VII)  Outer buildings Hualin Garden and Long Wall: The garden and the wall were built north of Ye city by Shi Hu in the 12th year of the Jianwu period. The “Record of Shi Jilong” chapter of The Book of Jin says, Shi Hu ordered Imperial Secretary Zhang Qun to mobilize 160,000 men and women to carry earth with 100,000 vehicles to build this garden and a wall of several dozen li north of Ye city. At night, Zhang Qun supervised workers by candlelight, seeing them building three towers and four gates, with three gates being connected to the Zhang River and consisting of iron panels. Once in a while, a great rainstorm came, drowning tens of thousands of people. The North City was also built, and the Zhang River was diverted into the garden. As a result, the North City collapsed, causing more than 100 deaths. Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era quotes Records of Later Zhao, “In the 12th year of the Jianwu period, a monk called Wu Jin (吴进) told the incumbent emperor, ‘The ethnic destiny will fade and the Jin court will revive. So, the Jin people should be suppressed by subjecting them to servitude.’ For this reason, the emperor ordered Imperial Secretary Zhang Qun to remove 160,000 men and women along with 100,000 vehicles to

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  205 build this garden and a dike. Moreover, they built a square wall with a five li edge.”70 This quote is incomplete and “Seven Notes on Hualin Garden (华林园七条)” of Record of Ye edited by Huang Huixian reads, In the fifth month, Shi Hu mobilized 10,000 people within 500 li to build the Hualin Garden west of the Palace of Red Bridge [that was seven li east of the Ye city]; the garden walls sprawled for dozens of li around. Some courtiers admonished him, but Shi Hu did not accept their advice. In the eighth month, a heavy rainstorm hit the city and the snow became three chi deep. The number of victims amounted to several thousand. Grand Astrologer submitted a memorial saying, “It’s not the right time to do such work and thus Heaven sent this disaster.” Shi Hu executed Minister of Public Construction (起部尚书)71 Zhu Gui (朱轨) to appease Heaven. Hualin Garden was located two li east of the Ye city. Shi Hu ordered Imperial Secretary Zhang Qun to mobilize 160,000 men and women to carry earth with 10,000 vehicles to build this garden. What’s more, they built a wall of several dozen li. Zhang Qun even supervised workers under the night candlelight and they finally built three towers and four gates. The North City was also built, and the Zhang River was diverted into the garden. Shi Hu planted various fruits in his garden and any fruit well-​known among the populace can be found in the garden. Shi Hu made a towed carriage with a tank of one zhang width and 1.4 zhang depth. When the bottom face was opened, the carriage dug pits of 1 zhang depth; and when the earth was added into the carriage, it could plant all seeds successfully. Shi Hu’s garden has Date of West Queen Mother (西王母枣). Its leaves are verdant in winter and summer; it matures in the 12th month and bears fruit—​three dates may be as long as one chi; there is another species called goat-​horn date (羊角枣) and three dates are one chi long as well. The “Jinglin Temple (景林寺)” chapter of Record of Buddhist Monasteries in Luoyang (洛阳伽蓝记)72 says, “Immortal Date is five cun long and when the peel and flesh are taken out, you will find its kernel is as thin as a needle. This date matures at First Frost and tastes very good. It is often said that this species was originated in the Kunlun Mountains and thus is also dubbed ‘Date of West Queen Mother.’ ” The garden has plum trees, which blossom in winter and mature in the following spring. Shi Hu’s garden abounds in Goubi Peach (勾鼻桃). When the peach matures, a fruit may be as heavy as 2.8 jin. Shi Hu’s garden has An pomegranates. A pomegranate may be as big as a bowl, yet it still tastes sweet.

206  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao It was an indigenous fruit of Anxi (安息, now Iran) of the Western Regions and therefore is given this name. Legend says that Zhang Qian (张骞) opened up the route to the Western Regions and brought it back to the Han dynasty. As time went on, this fruit spread across the Central Plains and Hebei regions and to other places. Hualin Garden: This garden is home to One Thousand Gold Dike (千金堤), Heavenly Spring Pond (天泉池), and Imperial Trench (御沟). On the dike, there were two bronze dragons spurting water at each other, so that the water flowed into the trench. On the third day of the third month in each year, Shi Hu along with his empress and courtiers had a waterside banquet. On that occasion, princesses, concubines, and other women came out in gorgeous dress, riding in stately carriages and putting up curtains beside the water. They enjoyed walking, riding horses, drinking, and dining all day long.73 After the Northern Wei dynasty, the garden was deserted. Historical records have two versions for the dating and location of Hualin Garden: The first version holds that it was built in the northern part of Ye city in the 12th year (346) of the Jianwu period. In contrast, the second version holds that it was built in the eastern part of Ye city in the 14th year of the Jianwu period. An analysis of those records shows that the first version is more reliable and thus should be accepted. Garden of Mulberry and Catalpa (桑梓园) and Linzhang Palace (临漳宫): Record of Ye says, “The Garden of Mulberry and Catalpa nestles three li west of Ye city. There is a palace leaning against the Zhang River, inhabited by ladies and their maids. Besides, there is a flower park with deer, roe deer, pheasants, and hares. Shi Hu arranged banquets in the park several times.” According to the “Record of Shi Jilong” chapter of The Book of Jin, “Shi Hu cultivated the royal field in the Garden of Mulberry and Catalpa.” The garden gets its name from the mulberry trees growing there. “On the third day of the third month or in the month when silkworms shed their cocoons, Shi Hu led his empress and ladies to pluck mulberry leaves in the garden.” Even in the Northern Wei dynasty, there were remaining mulberry trees. However, “not a single stretch of the city wall is left unscathed here now.”74 Palace of Eternal Joy (永乐宫): This palace was located seven li north of Ye city. Palace of Pear Garden (梨园宫): This palace was located 40 li west of the city. It became a postal pavilion under the Diplomacy Office (国信司)75 in the later Song dynasty and was abandoned in the Yuan dynasty. In the Song dynasty, the pavilion took charge of providing foods for various officials staying at the pavilion according to their officials.76

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  207 Palace of Red Bridge (赤桥宫): Record of Ye says, “There is a Palace of Red Bridge seven li east of Ye city.” Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period argues, “Linzhang Palace, Palace of Eternal Joy, Palace of Pear Garden, and Palace of Red Bridge were located in all four directions within ten li away from Ye city.” Purple Path, Purple Path Bridge (紫陌桥), and Purple Path Palace (紫陌宫): The Commentary on the Waterway Classic says, “The Zhang River flows past Sacrificial Path (祭陌) by the west. Back in the Warring States period, local custom required that a girl should be drowned to marry her to the river spirit. Before the drowning, a sacrificial ritual was conducted on the path.” The path gets its name in this way. Later Zhao changed its name into Purple Path. Specifically, in the 11th year (345) of the Jianwu period, Shi Hu built a Purple Path Bridge over the Zhang River and dug a tomb for Fo Tucheng when the monk was still alive. In the 15th year (347) of the Jianwu period, Fo Tucheng died and was buried in the tomb. In the Former Yan dynasty, Murong Jun threw Shi Hu’s body into the Zhang River. The corpse got caught on the post of the bridge and didn’t float away. Beside the Purple Path Bridge stood a palace of the same name. Record of Ye says, “The palace lies five li northwest of the city. During Shi Hu’s reign, he crossed the river from here and built the Purple Path Palace beside the bridge of the same name.” In the later Northern Qi, it became a major bridge to Bingzhou. Each time the emperor took a tour, all the courtiers sent him off or greeted him on the Purple Path. Heavenly Well Weir and Yanbei Mere (晏陂泽): Based on the water conservancy projects of Cao Cao’s reign, Later Zhao renovated the weir in the southwestern part of Ye city. Lu Hui said in Record of Ye, “The irrigation area is referred to as Yanbei Mere. For this reason, Zuo Si wrote in ‘Wei Capital Rhapsody,’ ‘The drainage ditches, twelve in number, have a common source but different mouths.’ ”77 Watch Terrace: Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period says, “The terrace was built by Shi Hu and given this name because it overlooked the Zhang River. Now Guantai town of Cizhou (磁州) is the location of the terrace.” Cockfighting Terrace: Record of Ye says, “Xuanwu Pond lies south of the Zhang River and Cockfight Terrace is five li northeast of the river.” The terrace was originally built in the Cao-​Wei dynasty and later reconstructed by Shi Hu. After its completion, the new terrace became a haunt for cockfighting aficionados. Cockfighting was conducted frequently by the emperor and others. Guo Maoqian (郭茂倩) quoted from Stories of the Ye Capital in volume 64 of Collection of Music Bureau Poems (乐府诗集),78 In the middle of Dahe period of Emperor Mingdi of Wei, Cockfighting Terrace was built. In the Later Zhao dynasty, Shi Hu also used his well-​ trained cocks to fight other cocks. Obviously, cockfighting had been a popular pastime. No wonder Cao Zhi depicted it in his poem,

208  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao In the eastern suburb they gather around to watch cockfights, their horses prance the length of the avenue.79 Horse-​Reviewing Terrace (阅马台): This terrace is also known as Horse-​ Playing Terrace (戏马台), Terrace of Liang Horses (梁马台), Liang Horse Terrace (凉马台), or Horse-​Laughing Terrace (笑马台). The Commentary on the Waterway Classic states, “The Zhang River flows north of the Shrine for Ximen Bao and west of Horse-​Parading Terrace. The terrace pedestal is five zhang high and there is a tower on the terrace. Each time Shi Hu intended to deliver a lecture on martial matters, he would ascend the tower to watch the soldiers and horses below. Shi Hu himself shot arrows as a signal for entry or departure of the cavalry or army.” Stories of the Ye Capital says, In the sixth year of the Jianwu period, Shi Hu built this terrace west of Ye city and south of the Zhang River. Shi Hu’s imperial guards were called “soaring dragons (龙腾).” The 5,000 black-​skinned warriors often did exercise on the beginning and ending days of each month. The soldiers erected banners and beat drums south of the Zhang River, forming an array of cavalry and infantry. When Shi Hu shot an arrow from the terrace, all the 5,000 warriors readily rode horses south of the river, charging forth and gathering below the terrace. As a result, all of them received presents from the emperor. Then Shi Hu shot another arrow, the gathered warriors would scatter away, holding their streamers and forming a neat array, which looks as if the number of soldiers came up to tens of thousands.80 Shi Hu once ordered some men to ride horses on the terrace for fun. Southern Suburbs: The “Record of Yao Yizhong (姚弋仲载记)” chapter of The Book of Jin says, Shi Hu ordered “[Yao] Yizhong to lead his more than 8,000 troops to be stationed in the southern suburbs [of the Ye city].” Tower of Demonstrating Militancy: The “Record of Shi Jilong” chapter of The Book of Jin says, “When Shi Hu went to attack the Eastern Jin, he amassed more than one million troops to Ye. Grand Astrologer (太史令)81 told him, ‘White wild geese gathered in the flat plot, which means the palace would be empty. Hence, it’s not appropriate to take leave of the Ye city.’ ” Shi Hu accepted his suggestion and visited Tower of Demonstrating Militancy (宣武观) to review the army and lift the curfew. Judging from this quote, the tower should be located in the southeastern suburbs of the Ye city. Wanyang Parade Ground (宛阳耀武场): The “Record of Shi Jilong” chapter of The Book of Jin says, “Shi Hu solicited young, robust men from Sizhou, Jizhou, Youzhou, and, Bingzhou as well as over 40,000 horses. Then the emperor reviewed the men and horses on the ground.” Palace of Bright Light (明光宫): This palace was located 23 li north of Ye city. Shi Zhi sent Liu Xian (刘显) to lead to a force of 70,000 to attack Ye, and Liu Xian had the force stationed at the Palace of Bright Light.

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  209 Xiang—​the Road to Ye City and Temporary Palace: Record of Ye edited by Huang Huixian says, “It was 1,000 li from Xiang to Ye City and the road was flanked by many elms. In the height of summer, many people walked below the shady trees.” The same book says, Shi Hu once left Xiang for Ye and built a temporary palace every 40 li throughout the 200 li long journey. Each palace had a lady and dozens of maid servants as well as some Imperial Bodyguards. Shi Hu dismounted from the carriage and immediately stopped. There were also drums and bells, as well as birds and beasts. Supervisors were assigned to take charge of them. All in all, Shi Hu had 44 large and small halls, terraces, towers, and temporary palaces. Anyang Palace (安阳宫) and Tangyin Palace (汤阴宫): Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period says, “Anyang Palace stood 40 li south of the [Ye] city and Tangyin Palace was located ten li away.” Shrine for Ximen Bao: This shrine was located on the southern bank of the Zhang River, 15 li west by north of Ye city. The “Record of Fu Jian” chapter of The Book of Jin says, “[Fu Jian’s (苻坚)] mother Lady Gou once toured around the Zhang River and prayed at the Shrine for Ximen Bao for a son.” The “Turbid Zhang River” chapter of The Commentary on the Waterway Classic says, “The Zhang River flows northeast and passes by the Shrine for Ximen Bao. East of the shrine stands a stele where there is an embossed inscription. The stone column at the eastern side of the shrine also has an inscription, which says, ‘It was built in the middle of the Jianwu period of the Zhao.’ ” This shrine stood northward at the Zhang River. Later in the Song dynasty, the shrine and the column were still in sound condition. Zhao Mingcheng (赵明诚) wrote in Record of Inscriptions on Bronze and Stone (金石录)82 the rubbing of the column inscription, which is known by the name of Record of the Pedestal of the Shrine for Ximen Bao of the Zhao (赵西门豹祠殿基记). The Record the Pedestal argues that the shrine was built in the eighth month of the sixth year of the Jianwu period. A villager of Fenglezhen, Anyang county, Henan province discovered the [truncated] stone column of the Shrine for Ximen Bao of the Later Zhao while conducting excavation in the shrine site in the 1990s. In the spring of 1998, the column was obtained through the solicitation by Linzhang County Cultural Heritage Protection Center and has been collected by the center. (VIII)  Revolts in Later Zhao and Northern Wei and the Wars in Ye Shi Hu’s ferocious rule led the people to hate him and it was dog-​eat-​dog between members of the Shi royalty. In the eighth month of the 14th year (348) of the Jianwu period, crown prince Shi Xuan killed Shi Tao and then Shi Hu executed Shi Xuan. In the fourth month of the first year (349) of the Taining period, Shi Hu fell seriously ill due to excessive fear and ordered Shi

210  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao Bin (石斌), King of Yan, to assist him in handling state affairs. But unexpectedly, Empress Liu and Minister of Personnel Zhang Cai fabricated Shi Hu’s imperial edict, killing Shi Bin. When Shi Hu passed away, his youngest son Shi Shi (石世) took the throne and the empress controlled the court. Afterwards, the Later Zhao fell into internal strife and courtiers murdered each other. Those kings and princes staying elsewhere returned to Ye, hoping to succeed to the throne. However, Shi Zun entered the city ahead of the others, taking the throne at the Hall of Supreme Militancy. As a result, he deposed the young emperor and the empress, and killed them both. Shi Chong (石冲), King of Pei, heard that Shi Zun had killed them and hailed himself emperor while staying in Ji (now Beijing). He led a force of 50,000 to conquer Ye. Moreover, he organized others in Yan and Zhao to attack Shi Zun together. Even before reaching Changshan (east of Shijiazhuang, Hebei province), the 100,000-​ odd coalition troops were defeated in Pingji (平棘, now Zhao county, Hebei province) by Shi Zun’s subordinate generals, such as Shi Min (石闵, namely 冉闵). In the end, Shi Chong was taken alive and forced to commit suicide. Shi Bao (石苞) along with his men from the West of Tongguan Pass (关右), King of Leping, also wanted to attack Ye and was defeated and executed. Shi Zun wanted to execute Shi Min, but his attempt came to naught. Later Shi Min sent armored warriors, killing Shi Zun and making Shi Jian new emperor. Shi Jian plotted with courtiers to kill Shi Min and their intrigue was disclosed. In this way, the royal palace fell into chaos. Shi Jian was horrified and had to kill those courtiers in the night to save himself. Shi Hu had another son called Shi Zhi (石祗), King of Xinxiang, who guarded Xiang; this son assigned troops with Yao Yizhong (姚弋仲) and Fu Hong (苻洪) to attack Shi Min in Ye and called on all forces inside and outside the country to help them. Shi Min assigned Shi Kun as Commander-​in-​Chief, leading an army of 70,000 infantrymen and cavalrymen to counterattack Shi Zhi. Later Capital Commandant (中领军) Shi Cheng (石成), Palace Attendant Shi Qi (石启), and Former Governor of Hedong Shi Hui (石晖) conspired to kill Shi Min and they themselves were killed in the end. Before long, Sun Fudu and Liu Zhu led 3,000 Jie warriors to attack Shi Min and were defeated. Then they retreated to Fengyang Gate and soon after Shi Min broke into the gate, executing Sun Fudu and other conspirators. Owing to the infighting, the Ye city was littered with corpses and Shi Min enacted an order that anyone of the Six Ethnic Groups who dared to take up a weapon in or outside the city would be executed. Large numbers of ethnic people cut off the bolt or crossed the wall, running way. There were battles throughout the Ye city. To avoid the maelstrom of wars, 200,000 homeless people crossed the Yangtze River and fled to the territory of the Jin court. More than 100,000 Zhi and Qiang refugees of Sizhou and Jizhou also fled west, hailing Fu Hong their lord at Fangtou (now southwest of Huaxian county, Henan province) and amounting to more than 100,000. Fu Hong’s son Fu Jian (苻犍), who stayed in Ye, cut off the gate latch and fled to Fangtou as well. Later he returned to Chang’an along with his men, founding the Former Qin dynasty. Confronted with the turmoil, Shi

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  211 Min did not take any action to placate the people, but suppressed them by butchery. He imprisoned Shi Jian and told the people to leave or stay there at will. As a result, all Han people within 100 li of the Ye city moved to Ye while Hu and Jie people overcrowded the city gates to run away. Shi Min knew exactly that those ethnic people would not venerate him and thus beheaded tens of thousands of them in a day regardless of their identity, gender, or age. The total number of victims soared to more than 200,000. To make things worse, he ordered other Han generals in prefectures and towns nearby to kill exotic people. Consequently, many Han Chinese who had a high nose and mustaches were mistakenly considered ethnic people and butchered. In A D 350, Shi Min renamed the state “Wei (卫).” This man, originally called Ran Min and styled Yongzeng, was a Han Chinese. He was also known by Jinu (棘奴) and Shi Hu’s adopted son. His father was called Ran Zhan (冉瞻) or Ran Liang (冉良), a native of Neihuang, Wei commandery (now Neihuang county, Henan province). When Shi Le split up Chenwu, he took Ran Zhan alive and adopted his son. For this reason, Ran Min’s surname was changed into Shi. As soon as Wei was founded in Ye, Ran Min changed his surname into Li and soon after resumed his original surname Ran. Most dukes and generals of Later Zhao refused to succumb to Ran Min. Consequently, more than 10,000 people including Great Steward (太宰)83 Zhao Shu (赵庶), Defender-​in-​Chief Zhang Ju (张举), General of the Capital Army (中军将军)84 Zhang Juan (张眷), Grand Master for Splendid Happiness (光禄大夫)85 Shi Yue (石岳), Grand Coordinator (抚军) Shi Ning (石宁), General of Military Defense (武卫将军) Zhang Ji (张季), dukes, marquises, ministers, commandants, and Generals of Soaring Dragons fled to Xiang; Shi Kun escaped to Jizhou; General of Pacifying Soldiers (抚军将军) Zhang Shen (张沈) took Fukou (now Fengfeng town, Handan city, Hebei province); Zhang Hedu (张贺度) settled in Shidu (石渎, now Linzhang county, Hebei province); General of Pacifying the South (宁南将军) Yang Qun (杨群) chose Sangbi (桑壁, now Pingshan county, Hebei province) as his base; Liu Guo (刘国) had his troops stationed in Yangcheng (now east of Wangdu, Hebei province); Yao Yizhong stayed in Nietou (now Qinghe county, Hebei province). Each warlord had several thousand men and established their personal dominions. Upon Ran Min’s order, Ma Qiu (麻秋) killed more than 1,000 barbarians of Later Zhao general Wang Lang (王朗) and Wang Lang fled to Xiang. When Ma Qiu along with his men tried to leave Luoyang for Ye, he was taken alive midway by Fu Hong and assigned a marshal. Shi Kun, Zhang Ju, and Wang Lang assembled a powerful force of 70,000 from Xiang and Xindu to attack Ye. Ran Min along with over 1,000 warriors counterattacked the coalition force north of Ye and defeated the much stronger enemies, beheading 3,000 men. Later Ran Min led a force of 30,000 to attack Zhang Hedu (张贺度) in Shidu. When Ran Min went out to fight, Shi Jian sent a eunuch to summon Zhang Shen and others to attack Ye by surprise. However, the eunuch sent Shi Jian’s secret letter to Ran Min and Ran Min rode a horse back to Ye, where he deposed the emperor and killed 28 grandsons of Shi Hu. As a result, the entire

212  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao Shi clan was exterminated. Yao Yizhong’s sons Yao Yi (姚益) and Yao Ruo (姚若) led their several thousand royal guards, leaving Ye for Nietou (滠头). Ran Min hailed himself emperor in Ye and founded the Wei regime. The first period of his reign was named Yongxing. The Ran-​Wei regime replaced the Later Zhao dynasty, leading to enormous turmoil across central China. The remaining forces of Eastern Jin, Former Yan, and Later Zhao all wanted to take Ye and rule central China. The Eastern Jin court assigned Fu Hong as King of Zhi to supervise military affairs of the Hebei region and Regional Inspector of Jizhou and assigned Fu Jian (苻犍) as Commander-​in-​Chief of Various Vanguard Armies of the Hebei region and Duke of Xiang. These attempts aimed to restore the Hebei region. The Former Yan sent a military force to march south along three routes; in less than one month, the force occupied the entire Youzhou region north of Fanyang (范阳). In contrast, the remaining force of Later Zhao clung to Xiang, directly overlooking Ye city. The Ran-​Wei regime fell into disorder, as Ran Min executed his major officials such as Li Nong, Wang Mo (王谟), Wang Yan (王衍), Yan Zhen (严震), and Zhao Sheng (赵升). Moreover, Ran Min sent a messenger to the Eastern Jin court to fight together for recovery of central China. However, the Eastern Jin court was caught in ferocious infighting and had no desire to care about the north. In this way, the court missed a rare opportunity of restoring China. In the 11th month of the first year (350) of the Yongxing period, Ran Min led a force of more than 100,000 to attack Xiang. In the third month of the following year, Shi Zhi and Yao Yizhong and Former Yan formed an alliance, smashing Ran Min’s troops and taking a toll of 100,000 men. Ran Min and the remaining ten-​odd horsemen fled back to Ye. Shi Zhi sent Liu Xian to lead a force of 70,000 to attack Ye, and this force was stationed at Palace of Bright Light 23 li away from Ye. Ran Min smashed their attack, beheading more than 30,000 men; Liu Xian himself surrendered and assisted Ran Min in killing Shi Zhi. Later Liu Xian betrayed Ran Min, hailing himself emperor in Xiang. In the first month of the third year (352) of the Yongxing period, Ran Min captured Xiang and killed Liu Xian, burning the Xiang palace to ashes. Moreover, he removed the local people to Ye. In this way, the residual forces of Later Zhao were almost completely annihilated and Former Yan became the RanWei regime’s direct enemy in a scramble for Ye city and the Hebei region. As Ran Min broke apart Xiang, he toured around Changshan and Zhongshan among other commanderies in the fourth month, triumphing in every battle against them. The enemies feared his dauntless bravery and encircled his army in a flat area, besieging them. As a result, Ran Min was captured alive and sent to Longcheng (now Chaoyang, Liaoning province), where he was sentenced to death. In the fourth month, Former Yan’s Murong Jun sent Murong Ping (慕容评) and Commandant-​in-​Ordinary Hou Kan (侯龛) to lead a force of more than 10,000 to attack Ye. When the force reached Ye, all the surrounding troops surrendered and the force besieged the city. Defending general Jiang

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  213 Gan (蒋干) and crown prince Ran Zhi (冉智) did not dare to go out and fight the enemy. The following month, a great famine befell Ye city and Jiang Gan sent Director Mu Song (缪嵩) and Supervisor of the Household of the Heir Apparent (詹事) Liu Yi (刘猗) with a letter of surrender to the Eastern Jin court and asked Xie Shang’s (谢尚) subordinate general Dai Shi (戴施) for reinforcements. In the sixth month, Dai Shi led more than 100 warriors to enter Ye via Fangtou and helped Jiang Gan guard Three Terraces. Moreover, Jiang Gan led a competent force of 5,000 to fight alongside the Jin troops against the Former Yan army. However, they were defeated by the enemies and lost 4,000 men. As a result, Jiang Gan retreated to Ye city. In the eighth month, Commandant of the Upper Army (长水校尉)86 Ma Yuan (马愿) and others opened the city gate to let the Former Yan army into the city; Dai Shi and Jiang climbed over the city wall, escaping to Cangyuan (仓垣 now northeast of Kaifeng, Henan province). The Former Yan army occupied Ye city and the Ran-​Wei regime came to an end. Murong Ping sent Empress Dong, Crown Prince Ran Zhi, Defender-​in-​Chief Shen Zhong (申钟), and Minister of Works Tiao Mu (条枚) among others in carriages to Ji. Murong Jun ordered Murong Ping to guard Ye. The short-​lived Ran-​Wei regime surrendered Ye to the Murong royalty. In all, the city suffered tremendous damage and destruction from these wars.

Notes

1 2 3 4

Charles O Hucker, op cit, 394–​495. Xuanling Fang, “Record of Shi Le (石勒载记),” The Book of Jin (晋书) vol 104. Charles O Hucker, op cit, 558. Guang Sima, “Annals of Jin: Chapter 10 (晋纪十),” History as a Mirror (资治通鉴) vol 88. 5 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 234. 6 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 567. 7 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 481. 8 Guang Sima (司马光), “Annals of Jin: Chapter 15 (晋纪十五),” History as a Mirror (资治通鉴) vol 93. 9 Xuanling Fang, “Record of Shi Le (石勒载记),” The Book of Jin (晋书) vol 104. 10 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 439. 11 Ian Honston, The Mozi: A Complete Translation, (New York: Columbia University Press, 2010), 757; it is noteworthy that “4 chi” and “3 chi” are replaced by “four chi” and “three chi.” 12 Daoyuan Li, “Turbid Zhang River (浊漳水),” The Commentary on the Waterway Classic (水经注) vol 10. 13 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 593. 14 Daoyuan Li, “Turbid Zhang River (浊漳水),” The Commentary on the Waterway Classic (水经注) vol 10. 15 Zhuoyun Yu (于倬云), A Collection of Essays on Chinese Palace Architecture (中国宫殿建筑论文集) (Beijing: Forbidden City Press 紫禁城出版社, 2002), 102. 16 Fang Li, Record of Ye (邺中记), quoted in Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era (太平御览) vol 183.

214  Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao 17 Jian Xu, “Buildings, V (楼第五),” Writings for Elementary Instruction (初学记) vol 24. 18 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 558. 19 Daoyuan Li, “Turbid Zhang River (浊漳水),” The Commentary on the Waterway Classic (水经注) vol 10. 20 Guang Sima, History as a Mirror (资治通鉴) vol 93. 21 Zixin Zhang (张子欣), op cit, 49–​50. 22 Xun Ouyang et al., “Dragons (龙),” Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters (艺文类聚) vol 96. 23 Huixian Huang (黄惠贤), “Record of Ye (邺中记),” Historical Materials on Wei-​ Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, and Sui and Tang Dynasties (魏晋南北朝隋 唐史资料), 9 and 10 (Dec 1988). 24 Shi Yue (乐史), Wenhui Wang, Record of Ye (邺中记), quoted in Gazetteer of the World During the Taiping Period (太平寰宇记) vol 55. 25 Fang Li, Record of Ye (邺中记), quoted in Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era (太平御览) vol 806. 26 As per Gazetteer of the World During the Taiping Period (太平寰宇记), “This show was called ‘Horseplay.’ A man climbed onto the horse and bent one foot while composing a handwriting. Incredibly, every character written by the man was regular and beautiful. Alternatively, a player acted like a macaque on horseback. Now he was staying at the horse-​head and then the horse-​tail. His body may be transverse or longitudinal. It is also called Macaque-​Riding.” 27 Huixian Huang, loc cit. 28 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 591. 29 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 237. 30 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 480. 31 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 301. 32 Dunzhen Liu (刘敦桢), “East Hall and West Hall in the Six Dynasties (六朝时期之东、西堂),” Complete Works of Liu Dunzhen (刘敦桢全集) (Beijing: China Architecture Publishing House 中国建筑工业出版社, 2007), 75–​77. 33 “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye (邺都宫室志),” Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture (彰德府志), Jiajing period of the Ming dynasty (明·嘉靖) vol 8. 34 Huixian Huang, loc cit. 35 Guang Sima,“Annals of Jin (晋纪),” History as a Mirror (资治通鉴) vol 98. 36 Huixian Huang, loc cit. 37 LCCHPC 文物保管所临漳县, “Brief Report on the Archaeological Investigation and Excavation of the Ye City (邺城考古调查和钻探简报),” Cultural Relics of Central China (中原文物), 4 (1983). 38 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 481. 39 Loc cit. 40 Xian Cui, “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye (邺都宫室志),” Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture (彰德府志), Jiajing period of the Ming dynasty (明·嘉靖) vol 8. 41 Huixian Huang, loc cit. 42 Huixian Huang, loc cit. 43 Huixian Huang, loc cit. 44 Huixian Huang, loc cit. 45 Huixian Huang, loc cit. 46 Huixian Huang, loc cit. 47 Huixian Huang, loc cit. 48 Huixian Huang, loc cit.

Ye City’s revival in Later Zhao  215 49 Huixian Huang, loc cit. 50 Huixian Huang, loc cit. 51 Huixian Huang, loc cit. 52 David R Knechtges and Taiping Zhang, Ancient and Early Medieval Chinese Literature (vol I): A Reference Guide, (Brill, 2010), 612. 53 Huixian Huang, loc cit. 54 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 503. 55 Huixian Huang, loc cit. 56 Huixian Huang, loc cit. 57 Huixian Huang, loc cit. 58 Charles O Hucker, loc cit, 589. 59 Huixian Huang, loc cit. 60 Charles O Hucker, loc cit, 411. 61 Charles O Hucker, loc cit, 338. 62 Charles O Hucker, loc cit, 556. 63 Liangji Hong (洪亮吉), “Later Zhao (后赵),” Gazetteer of Sixteen States (十六国疆域志) vol 2; Xuanling Fang, “Record of Shi Jilong (石季龙载记),” The Book of Jin (晋书) vol 108. 64 Zixin Zhang (张子欣), op cit, 45–​46. 65 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 451. 66 Xuanling Fang, “Record of Yao Xing (姚兴载记),” The Book of Jin (晋书) vol 117. 67 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 389. 68 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 299. 69 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 246. 70 Liangji Hong, “Later Zhao (后赵),” Gazetteer of Sixteen States (十六国疆域志) vol 2. 71 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 136. 72 John Lagerwey and Pengzhi Lü, eds, “The Period of Division (220–​589 AD ),” Early Chinese Religion (part 2), (Leiden: Brill, 2010), 16. 73 Jian Xu, Record of Ye (邺中记), quoted in Writings for Elementary Instruction (初学记) vol 4; Fang Li, Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era (太平御览) vol 30. 74 Daoyuan Li, “Turbid Zhang River (浊漳水),” The Commentary on the Waterway Classic (水经注) vol 10. 75 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 298. 76 Xian Cui, “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye (邺都宫室志),” Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture (彰德府志), Jiajing period of the Ming dynasty (明·嘉靖) vol 8. 77 David R Knechtges, op cit, 449. 78 Zongli Lu, Rumor in Early Chinese Empires (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2020), 351. 79 Fusheng Wu and Graham Hartill, op cit, (2016), 255. 80 Xian Cui, “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye (邺都宫室志),” Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture (彰德府志), Jiajing period of the Ming dynasty (明·嘉靖) vol 8. 81 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 482. 82 Qianshen Bai, Fu Shan’s World: The Transformation of Chinese Calligraphy in the Seventeenth Century (Cambridge: Harvard University Asia Center, 2003), 337. 83 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 483. 84 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 189. 85 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 288. 86 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 359.

6  Ye City’s prosperity in Former Yan and its decline in later dynasties

I.  The capital of Former Yan In A D 352, Murong Jun hailed himself emperor and founded the Former Yan dynasty, with Jicheng (now southwest of Beijing) serving as the capital. Also, the period title was renamed “Yuanxi.” Sizhou (司州) of Later Zhao was changed into Zhongzhou (中州) and seated in the Ye city. In the 11th month of the first year (357) of the Guangshou period of Former Yan, Murong Jun removed the capital to Ye. As a result, the city became the new dynasty’s political, economic, and military center. The Murong Clan was originally a branch of the Eastern Xianbei and occupied the Liaodong region. In the Cao-​Wei dynasty, they moved to the Liaoxi region. When it comes to the origin of the Murong clan, historical literature has different versions. One version holds that Yan and Dai gentry mainly wore a buyao cap (步摇冠). As soon as chief Mo Huba (莫护跋) saw the cap, he was consumed by envy and ordered all his tribesmen to tie back their hair and wear the cap. In this way, they called themselves by the name of the cap and this name evolved into ‘murong’ as time went by. According to another version, the tribesmen admired (mu) the virtue of Two Forms (二仪, namely Heaven and Earth) and inherited the color (rong) of three lights (三光, namely sun, moon, and stars). For this reason, the clan used ‘murong’ as their surname.1 A third version says that their ancestors lived in Murongsi (慕容寺) and thus gave themselves the clan name. The Murong clan began to thrive in the early Yongjia period of the Western Jin and many gentry members of Youzhou and Jizhou went to the clan’s place to avoid turmoil in the Yongjia period, helping the clan to found the regime. Murong Huang (慕容皝) declared himself King of Yan in 337 and passed away in 349; his son Murong Jun then took the throne. At this time, the Zhao-​Wei dynasty fell into chaos and Murong Jun attacked Zhao, conquering Ji, Fanyang (now Zhuozhou, Hebei province), Zhongshan (now Dingzhou, Hebei province), Changzhou (now east of Shijiazhuang, Hebei province), and Ye among other cities. In the end, the reigning emperor occupied the Hebei region and removed the capital to Ye. The Former Yan occupied the Ye city, which allowed it to retreat to Jizhou or Longcheng (龙城, now Chaoyang, Liaoning province) or conquer

Ye City’s prosperity in Former Yan  217 central China. Obviously, Ye really mattered to the Murong Clan in their reunification of China and its rule over central China and the Hebei region. Therefore, as soon as he took hold of the Hebei region, Murong Jun hurriedly removed the capital from Ji to Ye in the 11th month of the first year of the Guangshou period, and the emperor himself entered the newly built Ye palace the next month. This new emperor “renovated the imperial palace and reconstructed Bronze Bird Terrace.”2 From the first year of the Guangshou period to the 11th year (357–​370) of the Jianxi period, Ye served as the capital of the Former Yan. In other words, Ye had been the capital for 13 years until the Former Qin subjugated the city in 370. Murong Jun’s efforts mainly involved renovation of former buildings and thus those buildings were mostly rebuilt hastily. As capital removal was a major concern for any country, renovation and varnishing were necessarily conducted to make the new capital take on a new look. The renovation focused on the imperial palace and Bronze Bird Terrace because these two places were badly damaged because of the frequent internal and external strife. As soon as Murong Jun resided in the Ye palace, he started renovating it in the bitter cold 12th month. This is at odds with what the “Book IV. Proceedings of Government in the different Months (月令)” chapter of The Book of Rites says, “In the first month of autumn, … orders are given to … repair a city and its bailey. In the second month of autumn, … it is allowable to build a city and its bailey.” This quote shows us how hurried the renovation was at that time. From this point on, though Ping Xi (平熙) and Hou Qing (侯青) were both appointed Great Craftsman (将作大匠) according to the “Record of Murong Wei (慕容暐载记)” chapter of The Book of Jin, the Former Yan did not implement any massive civil works. There are only meager records of Former Yan’s buildings in Ye. Over the past nearly 40 years, archaeological investigation has discovered a number of ancient objects. Relevant sources are indicated as follows: Hall of Positive Yang (正阳殿): The “Records of Former Yan” chapter in volume 3 of Gazetteer of the Sixteen States quotes from Records of Former Yan, “[Murong] Juan succeeded to his father’s throne at the front Hall of Positive Yang. Fu Jian entered the Ye palace and ascended to the Hall of Positive Yang.” It is recorded that Murong Jun hailed himself emperor in Ji instead of Ye, and the Ji palace had a Hall of Positive Yang. Perhaps the Former Yan renamed Later Zhao’s Hall of Supreme Militancy “Hall of Positive Yang” after its removal of the capital to Ye. Hall of Achieved Bliss (应福殿): Gazetteer of the Sixteen States quotes from Records of Former Yan again, “[Murong] Juan passed away at the Front Hall of Achieved Bliss in the first month of the fourth year (360) of the Guangshou period.” This hall should be the official hall of the harem and used to be called Hall of Resplendent Yang back in the Later Zhao. The Former Hall of Achieved Bliss bore witness to the death of Murong Jun, which agrees with the ritual that “an ancient emperor should die in an official hall.” Archaeologists discovered a tile inscribed with characters “Wealth and Nobility Forever (富贵万岁),”3 which should be a remaining object of the Former Yan palace.

218  Ye City’s prosperity in Former Yan East Hall: Gazetteer of the Sixteen States quotes from Records of Former Yan, “[Murong] Wei was versed in various canons and enshrined Confucius at East Hall.” It seems that the East Hall was located east of the Hall of Positive Yang and used to be the East Hall of Shi Hu. Bronze Bird Terrace: The “Record of Murong Jun (慕容儁载记)” chapter of The Book of Jin says, the Former Yan ‘rebuilt Bronze Bird Terrace.’ Bronze Bird Terrace was the highest of the three terraces and suffered the worst damage in wars. So from it was rebuilt ahead of the other two terraces. Ancestral Temple of the Murong Clan: In the seventh year (364) of the Jianxi period, Muyu Long removed the Ancestral Temple of the Murong Clan from Longcheng to Ye. This temple should be located southeast of the Hall of Positive Yang. Celestial Terrace: The “Biography of Huang Hong (黄泓传)” in volume 95 of The Book of Jin says, in the Former Yan dynasty, Xu Dun (许敦) acted as Supervisor of Celestial Terrace. The terrace should be located within the Ye palace. Xianxianli Primary School (显贤里小学): In the second month of the third year (359) of the Guangshou period, Murong Jun built a primary school at Xianxian Quarter, Ye city to educate noble children. Xianxianli was possibly located at Noble Quarter north of Dongxi Boulevard within East Gate back in the Cao-​Wei dynasty. Pu Pond (蒲池): In the second month of the third year of the Guangshou period, Murong Jun regaled various officials at Pu Pond, teaching crown prince Murong Wei to abstain from hunting and music. The Hualin Garden of Later Zhao had a pond of the same name, which seems to be the Pu Pond of the Former Yan. Tower of East Light: This tower lay in the southeastern corner of Ye. Murong Jun dreamed of being bitten on the arm by Shi Hu and excavated his tomb, where no corpse was founded. Later, the emperor obtained Shi Hu’s body from under the Tower of East Light. Purple Path Bridge: This bridge lay northwest of Ye city. Murong Jun tied up Shi Hu’s corpse and threw it into the Zhang River, but the corpse clung to the bridge. The North Gate of Ye: In the 11th month of the 11th year (370) of the Jianxi period, the Former Qin army besieged Ye city, and then Former Yan’s Gentleman Cavalier Attendant Yu Wei along with more than 500 hostage princes of Buyeo (扶余), Goguryeo, and Shangdang opened the north gate of Ye and the Former Qin army seized the city. All these princes were made to live in the northeast corner of the city and thus the north gate should be Guangde Gate in the eastern part of the North Ye City. Xianyuan Mausoleum (显原陵): This mausoleum is the burial ground of the Later Zhao’s founding emperor Shi Hu and it should be located southwest of the Ye city. In the tenth year (369) of the Jianxi period of Former Yan, Murong Chui hid himself in the mausoleum because he had been betrayed. Later on, he left there for the Former Qin court.

Ye City’s prosperity in Former Yan  219 Murong Jun’s Tomb: The “Former Yan” chapter in volume 3 of Gazetteer of the Sixteen States quotes from Records of Former Yan, “[Murong] Juan was buried in Ye city. The “Record of Murong Jun (慕容儁载记)” of The Book of Jin says his tomb is named ‘Dragon Mausoleum (龙陵).’ ” After the removal of the capital, the Former Yan did not prosper because it was sandwiched between the Eastern Jin and the Former Qin. The Eastern Jin wanted to take a northern expedition while the Former Qin wanted to invade the eastern frontier of the Former Yan. In this situation, Murong Jun planned to take preemptive action. In clear terms, through his edict, the commanderies, princedoms, and marquisates selected three strong men of every five men to assemble in Ye and attack the southern enemies in the winter of the following year. In the 12th month of the third year (359) of the Guangshou period, the Former Yan’s troops gathered in Ye. Despite that, the troops were disorganized and had no morale; moreover, bad administration was rampant and rebellions occurred frequently. As a result, the public security of the capital was in chaos. The Former Yan enacted strict regulations and arrested more than 100 ringleaders and executed them. The rebellions came to a halt in this way. Murong Jun fell seriously ill and died soon after. All the recruited men had to be sent back home. This military operation came to nothing and this impacted the minds of the people, causing local residents great trouble. After Murong Jun’s death, the Former Yan regime split into several cliques and they engaged in fierce strife. Murong Ke (慕容恪) and Murong Ping (慕容评) caught and executed Muyu Gen (慕舆根), domineering over the court. Murong Ke worked hard at governance and the dynasty had a short-​lived heyday. However, Murong Ke died of an illness in the fifth month of the eighth year (367) of the Jianxi period. Murong Ping single-​handedly controlled court affairs and joined hands with the empress dowager Kezuhun (可足浑) to elbow out the meritorious general Murong Chui (慕容垂) and plotted to oust him. So, Murong Chui had no choice but to flee to the Former Qin while the Former Yan regime had an overt breakup and the nobles kept on becoming more and more decadent. For instance, kings, dukes, and royal kin controlled many households of Youzhou and Jizhou; therefore, “the state’s registered households were even fewer than private households and the storehouse had few supplies and resources compared with tremendous expenditure.”4 Even when the Former Qin army swarmed in, Murong Ping still engaged in blocking the mountain streams and selling firewood and water to his own troops. As a result, the silk was piled up like a hill. The volume 828 of Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era quotes from Che Pin’s (车频) The Book of Qin (秦书), “When Wang Meng (王猛) attacked Ye, Murong Ping fought back and made money by selling water to his own soldiers. As a result, the defending troops lost morale and ran away. In this way, Wang Meng defeated Murong Ping.” In the third month of the 11th year (370) of the Jianxi period, the Former Qin ruler Fu Jian sent Wang Meng (王猛) to supervise General of Guarding the South (镇南将军) Yang An (杨安) and nine other generals to lead a force

220  Ye City’s prosperity in Former Yan of 60,000 infantrymen and cavalrymen against the Former Yan. In the eighth month, they took Hu Pass (southeast of the present-​day Huguan, Shanxi province), Jinyang, and vanquished Murong Ping’s 400,000-​ odd strong troops. Then they marched east and wiped out all periphery forces before attacking Ye. In the 11th month, Fu Jian led a strong force of 100,000 men to attack Ye and ordered general Deng Qiang (邓羌) to attack Xindu (now north of Jizhou, Hebei province), aiming to intercept the reinforcements. At the same time, Fu Jian himself and Wang Meng supervised the main force to attack Ye. The local residents felt greatly fearful and Gentleman Cavalier Attendant Yu Wei (余蔚) along with more than 500 hostage princes of Buyeo (扶余), Goguryeo, and Shangdang opened the north gate in the night, letting the Former Qin troops get in. Emperor Murong Wei and his courtiers escaped hurriedly but these runaways were all taken alive when they reached Gaoyang (the old county seat of Gaoyang, Hebei province). In this way, the Former Yan perished, and the Ye city fell into the Former Qin’s hands. The “Miscellaneous Remarks: The History of Jin (杂说中：诸晋史)” chapter in volume 17 of General Interpretation of History (史通通释) quotes from Records of Former Yan, “Fu Jian entered the Ye palace and read the documents and drawings, knowing there were 157 commanderies and 1,579 counties;” “there were 2,458,969 households consisting of 9,987,935 persons.” The Former Qin not only gained those households, but even took away objects such as Compass Carriage and Bronze Men (cast by the First Emperor of Qin), as well as musicians, to the Guanzhong region. The “Record of Music” chapter in volume 23 of The Book of Jin says, “When Murong Jun suppressed Ran Min, some of the musicians in Ye came (south). Later when Wang Meng took Ye, the musicians obtained by the Murong Clan were taken to Guanyou.” In the middle of the Taiyuan period, the Eastern Jin disbanded Fu Jian’s troops and acquired his musicians like Yang Shu (杨蜀). These musicians studied the former royal music and therefore the music for the imperial court conventions took shape. The ethnic regimes attached great importance to protection and improvement of Han Chinese ritual music, so that the ritual music spread widely along with the migration of the musicians, influencing the Eastern Jin. Its ethnic and Chinese people who jointly created the Chinese civilization made it grow and prosper. These records provide a great deal of evidence.

II.  Ye city’s decline in Former Qin and Later Yan In the sixth year (370) of the Jianyuan period, Fu Jian occupied the Ye city and established Jizhou, assigning Wang Meng as Supervisor of the Armies of Six Prefectures of Guandong and Governor of Jizhou, to guard Ye. In the eighth year, Fu Jian appointed Wang Meng as Counselor-​in-​Chief and let Fu Rong (苻融), Duke of Yangping to replace Wang Meng to guard Ye. In the sixth month of the 16th year (380), Fu Jian put Fu Rong in charge of the Department of State Affairs as Chancellor (录尚书事)5 and Fu Pi, Duke of Changle, as Commander-​in-​Chief of the Armies of Guandong, Grand

Ye City’s prosperity in Former Yan  221 General of the Eastern Expedition, and Governor of Jizhou, guarding Ye. In the seventh month of the 21st year (385) of the Jianyuan period, Fu Pi led more than 60,000 men and women of Ye to enter Jinyang. During the Former Qin’s 16 years’ occupation, Ye still served as an important city of the Guandong region despite being not the capital. The three defending generals were among the pillars of the Former Qin regime. As the political and military center of Guandong and Hebei regions, Ye city played a crucial role in stabilizing the regime’s governance. As soon as Fu Jian occupied Ye city, the lord focused much effort on selecting chief officials for various prefectures, commanderies and counties to consolidate his rule of the previous Yan land. So, he not only appointed Wang Meng as Governor of Jizhou to guard the Ye city but he also appointed his confidants as chief officials of the surrounding prefectures and as governors of commanderies nearby. For example, Guo Qing (郭庆) served as Commander-​in-​Chief of the Armies of Youzhou and Regional Inspector of Youzhou, guarding the Ye city; Wei Zhong (韦钟) served as Governor of Wei Commandery, and Peng Bao (彭豹) served as Governor of Yangping Commandery. In contrast, those common prefectural governors and county heads remained the same as previously. In this way, Fu Jian could use the Ye city as a base to spread his will and authority across the Guandong and Hebei regions. On the one hand, the surrounding prefectures and commanderies strengthened the Ye city’s political functions and promulgated such functions farther; on the other hand, those satellite prefectures and commanderies made the city a true regional center. Fu Jian appointed Shen Shao (申绍) Governor of Changshou Commandery as Gentleman Cavalier Attendant, making him and Wei Ru (韦儒) both Bandit-​Suppressing Censors (绣衣使者)6 to inspect the prefectures and commanderies of the Guandong region to observe folk customs, encourage and supervise farming and sericulture, provide support for disadvantaged people, bury the dead people, and praise virtuous men. The Former Yan’s worst malpractices that impeded the livelihood of the people were changed or abolished. These measures could not have been taken without their promulgation throughout the Ye city and the surrounding cities and towns. At the same time, the stability of the Ye city, Guandong region, and Hebei region not only expanded the Former Qin’s territory, but also effectively improved its regime and vigor. During Wang Meng’s governance, he recommended many worthies of Youzhou and Jizhou to the Former Qin regime, such as Assistant Director of the Left in the Department of State Affairs (尚书左丞)7 Fang Kuang (房旷) of Qinghe, Secretarial Court Gentlemen (尚书郎)8 Fang Mo (房默), Cui Cheng (崔逞), and Han Yin (韩胤) of Yan, Editorial Directors (著作郎) Yang She (阳陟) of Beiping, Tian Si (田勰), and Yang Yao (阳瑶), and Magistrate of Qinghe county (清河相)9 Hao Lue (郝略). Later when Fu Rong replaced Wang Meng to guard Ye, he maintained high standards of official selection and achieved excellent governance by conducting stringent inspection, building schools, and employing Han Chinese. Moreover, Ye was a major city for stabilization of the entire Hebei

222  Ye City’s prosperity in Former Yan region. In the 16th year (380) of the Jianyuan period, Former Qin’s Regional Inspector of Youzhou and Duke of Xingtang and Fu Luo (苻洛) and Duke of Beihai Fu Zhong (苻重) initiated a rebellion. Fu Rong, along with his 30,000 troops, went north, smashing the rebels’ morale and suppressing them. From the sixth year to the 18th year (370–​382) of the Jianyuan period, the Hebei region maintained fundamental stability. In the 19th year (383) of the Jianyuan period after the Battle of Feishui had ended, the Hebei region fell into turmoil. The Ye city was a barometer of the Heibei region’s peace. As Fu Jian was defeated on the Fei River, Youzhou and Jizhou became unstable. General Murong Chui wanted to restore the Former Yan and asked Fu Jian to let him lead a force to guard the Hebei region. Fu Jian gave him 3,000 men and appointed General of the Imperial Guard (骁骑将军)10 Shi Chao to guard the Ye city. Having arrived in Ye, Murong Chui requested to enter the city for the excuse of visiting the Ancestral Temple of the Murong Clan. Defending general Fu Pi suspected him of doing something devious and rejected his request. So Murong Chui disguised himself and crept into the city, killing the neighborhood head (亭吏) who prevented him from worshiping his ancestors in the temple and burning down the entire neighborhood. At this time, Dingling chief Zhai Bin (翟斌) betrayed the Former Qin, attacking Luoyang (now east of Luoyang, Henan province). Fu Jian ordered Murong Chui to leave Ye for Luoyang to attack Zhai Bin. In fact, Murong Chui left Murong Nong, Murong Kai (慕容楷), and Murong Shao (慕容绍) in Ye and he himself led troops to Tangchi (汤池), Anyang. The general stopped in the Henei region on the excuse of having insufficient manpower, but actually he marshalled 8,000. In this way, Murong Chui organized a rebellion in the night, killing Former Qin’s inspector Fu Feilong (苻飞龙) and all his troops. He surreptitiously sent someone to ask Murong Nong and his men to respond to him. As a result, they stole hundreds of horses from Fu Pi and disguised themselves, fleeing from the Ye city to Lieren (northeast of Feixiang, Hebei province), where they started amassing military forces. In the first month of the 20th year (384) of the Jianyuan period of the Former Qin, Murong Chui hailed himself king in Xingyang (荥阳, now Xingyang, Henan province), founding the Later Yan and declaring breakup with the Former Qin. Then he led a force of 200,000, entering the Hebei region via the Henan and reaching the Ye city. At Lieren, Murong Nong and others marshalled Wuhuan and Tuge’s (屠各) tribesmen, vanquishing the Former Qin troops and becoming reunited with Murong Chui. In the second month, Murong Chui led more than 200,000 of Dingling and Wuhuan soldiers to build flying bridge11 and dig tunnels. However, none of these attempts helped them conquer the Ye city. So they built a long besiegement around Ye. In the fourth month, Murong Chui accepted Feng Heng’s (封衡) advice to flood the city, but this plan was undermined by Dingling tribesmen who colluded with Fu Pi. With the long-​term war in mind, Murong Chui removed the old people and weak people of the troops and common people along with

Ye City’s prosperity in Former Yan  223 their baggage to Xincheng (now southwest of Feixiang, Hebei province). Moreover, he mobilized more than 10,000 young, strong men under Eastern ethnic chief Wang Yan (王晏) to help attack the Ye city. In brief, the Later Yan put manpower of nearly 400,000 into this war. In the eighth month of the siege, the defending troops cut pinewood to feed horses and Murong Chui himself retreated to Xincheng, Feixiang due to insufficient food and fodder, leaving the west route unguarded. In the 12th month, Fu Jian hung onto the Ye city and Murong Chui ordered his troops to besiege the city. Nevertheless, the Later Yan had no power to attack the Ye city and still left the route out there to let Fu Pi get away in his own right. Fu Pi turned to Eastern Jin general Liu Laozhi (刘牢之) for help and Liu Laozhi led a battalion of 20,000 to enter Ye and transport 2,000 hu of rice to support the defending troops. Qin and Jin initiated a joint attack against Murong Chui, so he dispersed the siege and ran north. The Eastern Jin troops chased the Yan army and stole baggage from them. Later the Yan army counterattacked the Eastern Jin troops, and defeated them at Wuqiao Mere (五桥泽) in the present-day Guangzong county (广宗县) north of Linzhang county seat. Owing to his defeat, Liu Laozhi was recalled while Murong Chui went north to Zhongshan (now Dingzhou, Hebei province) and made it the capital of his state. The campaign between Later Yan’s Murong Chui and Former Qin’s Fu Pi (苻丕) lasted for ten months. The Later Yan Army had nearly 400,000 men and far outnumbered the tens of thousands of Former Qin troops. Even so, the Later Yan did not gain hold of the Ye city despite the use of various means like flying stairway,12 tunnel, besiegement, and flooding. Obviously, Murong Chui’s flooding followed in the footsteps of Cao Cao, but why didn’t he gain victory like Cao Cao? The major factors are as follows: First, the Ye in the Sixteen States dynasty had stronger defensive works than in the Wei or Jin dynasties, and the earth city walls of the Wei and Jin dynasty had been replaced by brick walls in the Later Zhao, and the Three Terraces had been rebuilt in the northwest part of Ye city over the past centuries. Second, Fu Pi built up watertight defense and excelled in smashing the enemies’ attacks, as Dingling’s breakdown of the water-​based assault and there were other forces of the Former Qin on all sides of the Ye city and reinforcement from the Eastern Jin court. Third, this time the defending generals united against the invading troops while Cao Cao, Murong Jun, and Wang Meng each had their agent inside the Ye city. Actually, Wang Jun, Ji Sang, and Shi Le took hold of the city because the defending generals fled even without fighting. However, Fu Pi had no traitor in collaboration with the attacker and his troops did fight to the death until Murong Chui was dragged down. The long period of fighting had exhausted both sides; as soon as Murong Chui retreated, Fu Pi along with gentry and commoners went to find something eatable at Fangtou because of hunger; unexpectedly, the Eastern Jin army came attacking them and thus they retreated to the Ye city. In the seventh month of the 21st year (385) of the Jianyuan period, Fu Pi led more than 60,000 men and women to move to Jinyang, leaving behind an unpopulated Ye city to Later Yan.

224  Ye City’s prosperity in Former Yan Actually, the city had become tremendously dilapidated after nearly two years’ war. Later Yan occupied Ye city and appointed King of Lu Murong He (慕容和) as General of Southern Court Gentlemen (南中郎将)13 to guard Ye. In the tenth month of the sixth year (391) of the Jianxing period, Zhai Jian (翟剑) of Dingling attacked Ye and was defeated by Murong Nong. Then Zhai Jian ran away. In the 12th month of the following year, Murong Chui ordered Murong Nong along with his army to guard Ye. According to the “Record of Murong Chui (慕容垂载记)” chapter of The Book of Jin, upon entry into Ye, Murong Nong built a city wall along the Fengyangmen Avenue because he considered the city was too large to defend. The enclosed western part of the city was named Separated City (隔城), so that its west wall was actually the west city wall and its south wall was the south city wall west of Fengyang Gate while its east wall stood east of Fengyangmen Avenue between the southeastern wall of Fengyang Gate and the wall of the Inner City. In this way, the Ye city was divided into three parts, namely Inner City (Northwestern Part), Separated City (Southwestern Part), and Barbican (Eastern and Southeastern Parts). Murong Nong’s transformation of the Ye city aimed to narrow down the circle of defense and focus his defensive force on the western and northwestern parts of Ye because the east, south, and north sides were all points of breakthrough. The northward wall east of Fengyangmen Avenue served as another line of defense against possible intrusion. In 1988, archaeologists explored the place south of the Ye palace site and east of the Fengyangmen Avenue site, discovering the foundation of the eastern wall of the separated city, which agrees with the above record. In the ninth year (394) of the Jianxing period, Murong Chui attacked Western Yan, with Ye serving as the rear base of the southern army, and returned to Ye that Murong Hui (慕容会) had guarded upon his imperial edict after conquering Western Yan in the ninth month of the same year. In the first year (396) of the Yongkang period of Later Yan, Murong De (慕容德) was assigned as Commander-​in-​Chief of the Armies of Jizhou, Yanzhou, Qingzhou, Xuzhou, Jingzhou, and Yuzhou and Supervisor of Ye. In the same year, Tuoba Gui (拓跋珪) of Northern Wei led a cavalry force of more than 400,000 to attack the Later Yan. In the 11th month, Wei general Tuoba Yi (拓跋仪) along with 50,000 men to attack Ye and was defeated by Murong Qing (慕容青) at the base of the city. The next month, Helai Lu (贺赖卢) led 20,000 cavalrymen to reinforce Tuoba Yi. In the first month of the second year (397) of the Yongkang period, the Northern Wei sent massive troops to attack Ye, and defending general Murong De smashed the Wei troops using their internal conflict. In the fourth month, the Wei troops had to call off the siege and withdraw because of a lack of rations. They retreated to Julu (presently southwest of Ningjin, Hebei province). In the tenth month, Tuoba Gui attacked Zhongshan, the capital of Later Yan and sent Tuoba Yi to lead 30,000 to attack Ye. In the first year (398) of the Jianping period, Murong De along with 40,000 residents moved south to Huatai at Murong Lin’s (慕容麟)

Ye City’s prosperity in Former Yan  225 suggestion. As a result, Tuoba Yi entered and occupied Ye. After the wars in the Northern Wei and Later Yan, the city declined further than ever.

Notes 1 Xuanling Fang, “Record of Murong Wei (慕容廆载记),” The Book of Jin (晋书) vol 108. 2 Ibid., vol 110. 3 Guangji Xu (徐光冀) and Zhijie Gu (顾智界), “Preliminary Report of the Excavation of the Relic Site of North Ye City of Linzhang, Hebei Province (河北临漳邺北城遗址勘探发掘简报),” Archaeology (考古), 7 (1990). 4 Guang Sima, “Annals of Jin, Chapter 23 (晋纪二十三),” History as a Mirror (资治通鉴) vol 101. 5 Andrew Eisenberg, Kingship in Early Medieval China (Leiden: Brill Academic Pub, 2008), 98. 6 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 248. 7 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 522. 8 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 411. 9 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 230. 10 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 234–​235. 11 The term “flying bridge” (飞 飞桥) refers to a quasi-​bridge attacking gear. In ancient China, an army spread it over a moat to conquer a city or fortress. It consists of a wooden board, two long logs and two wooden wheels. 12 The term “flying stairway” (飞 飞梯) is an attacking mechanism that gets its name from its resemblance to a staircase. It refers to a quasi-​bridge attacking gear; in ancient China, an army extended it up to the top of the city wall to attack the guardians. 13 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 220.

Epilogue Influence of Ye City’s layout on ancient capitals in East Asia

Since its occupation in A D 398, Ye had experienced Northern Wei, Eastern Wei, Northern Qi, and Northern Zhou dynasties. In the Northern Wei dynasty, emperors and their courtiers discussed the relocation of the capital three times to no effect. Anyway, Ye had been the regional center by which the Northern Wei regime were able to govern central China. In 534, Gao Huan hailed Yuan Shanjian (元善见) emperor and relocated the capital from Luoyang to Ye, founding the Eastern Wei dynasty. In 550, Gao Yang (高洋) made himself emperor, and Eastern Wei gave place to Northern Qi. During the 43 years of these two dynasties, the Ye city achieved its greatest prosperity; the architectural art culminated in those years, which represents the apogee of ancient Chinese capital construction in the sixth century. The scale of the Ye city increased by more than twice. Specifically, Gao Huan expanded South Ye City south of North Ye City, each of which was broken down into two halves with the same central axis. South Ye City and North Ye City were separated by a single wall, resembling an amalgam of a transverse rectangle and a longitudinal rectangle. This clear-cut layout influenced not just the city planning of Sui and later dynasties’ capitals but also that of ancient capitals elsewhere in East Asia. Indeed, it is this far-flung influence that leads to the emergence of Sinic cities. The layouts of all Sinic cities can be traced back to the Ye city of Wei and Jin dynasties more than 1,000 years ago and what lies at the core of this development trajectory is the changes in the capital layout system.

I. Changes and characteristics of the Ye city’s layout The layout of the Ye city falls into the following stages: First, the city design was initiated by Yuan Shao during the Eastern Han epoch. Second, a new design was conducted by Cao Cao in the Cao-Wei dynasty. Third, the city design was transformed by Shi Le and Shi Hu in the Later Zhao dynasty. Fourth, the city design was planned afresh and the city was expanded by Gao Huan in the Eastern Wei dynasty and Gao Yang in the Northern Qi dynasty. Over the 370odd years, the city had formed a clear-cut layout. The North Ye City “is seven li long eastward and five li wide northward” and thus called “Qiwu City (七五城).” Archaeological investigation has shown that its narrowest length is 2,400 m and

Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout  227 the maximum length is 2,620 m, while the width is 1,700 m. Obviously, the ratio of length to width is in the region of 3:2. Archaeologically, the south, north, and east walls are all straight lines basically, except the curvy west wall following the terrain. Compared with capitals like Xianyang, Chang’an, and Luoyang from the Qin and Han dynasties onwards, the Ye city has a neater and more scientific look, which facilitated the division of function zones like inner and outer roads, neighborhoods, quarters, streets, markets, palaces, halls, and government offices. As to the layout of the South Ye City, Record of Ye says “It is eight li and 60 steps long northward and six li wide westward.” The measured length and width are 2,800 m and 3,460 m, forming a rectangle. Kishi Toshio argued that the city should be dubbed “3:2 Capital” because the ratio of its length to width is approximately 3:2. This Japanese scholar said, When it comes to a 3:2 rectangle, what strikes me first is a book—​you know, most books are designed with a length/​width ratio of 3:2. Actually, the ratio means the width is 4.2 cun (127 millimeter) and the length is 6.2 cun (188 millimeter). The length-​to-​width ratio is close to 6:4 or 1:0.666. In other words, no matter what A or B size paper may be used, the ratio remains 1:0.707 or so and thus the 3:2 ratio should be the best-​looking format because this format is closer to the golden section ratio of 1:0.618 than any other format.1 Ancient Chinese may not know what the golden section ratio means, but their attempts at applying geographical knowledge in capital layout coincides with the principle of geometry. In the early Eastern Wei, reconstruction and expansion of Ye city not only integrated the South Ye City and North Ye City, but even absorbed the elements of Luoyang’s layout, forming a rectangle of 5,160 m in length and 2,400–​2,800 m in width. Apparently, the length-​to-​width ratio is a far cry from the golden section ratio. But as a matter of fact, Gao Huan, Gao Longzhi (高隆之), and others had their own considerations. First, judging from the historical context and building materials, the urban construction properly tapped into the specific terrain of being high, flat, and open south of the North Ye City, which facilitated introduction of the Huan River from the southwest. Second, this action succeeded in saving a great amount of civil works and labor while creating the greatest possible urban space. So this was the best design scheme of urban expansion at that time. Third, the entire capital city nestled southward, sprawling south along the central axis of the North Ye City. This neat-​looking urban design not only restored the planning arrangement of the North Ye City, but also preserved the city layout of Luoyang of the Northern Wei dynasty. Fourth, this combination of urban planning had close ties with the politics of Eastern Wei and Northern Qi. Gao Huan hailed Yuan Shanjian as emperor and founded the Eastern Wei regime, with the political-​military power being controlled by him and his son. The emperor resided in the South [Ye] City while the Grand Counselor-​in-​Chief Gao Huan dwelt in the North [Ye]

228  Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout City and controlled the South City, forming a political situation from the Eastern Wei through the Northern Qi. Fifth, when Gao Huan built the South Ye City, the turtle-​shaped layout strengthened the defense of the capital city from a biotic point of view. This is without doubt a bold attempt in the history of ancient Chinese capital architecture. A Record of Visits to Antiquities of Heshuo quotes from the anonymous single-​volume Record of Ye, Gao Huan discovered a “holy turtle” as large as one zhang during the construction process and thus the capital layout adopted the same shape design. “The walls and battlements were shaped like a turtle and an elephant.” One scholar said this is “a groundless and unreasonable assumption.” Nevertheless, the goal of Gao Huan’s acceptance of the capital layout was to lengthen the lifespan of his state. It is well known that the Cao-​Wei, Later Zhao, and Former Yan dynasties based in the city were all short-​lived, and Xiaowen Emperor of Northern Wei believed that making Ye the capital would let his state indulge in extravagance and not survive very long. Moreover, the names of places like Bairen (柏人) and Lieren appeared wicked and ill-​omened. Therefore, he chose Luoyang instead of Ye as the capital. Later the Gao clan made Ye the capital of their state and instilled new elements into the capital layout, hoping that the Gao regime would enjoy long peace and stability. The rammed walls and defense works of the Ye city underwent tremendous changes in the different dynasties. Back in the Eastern Han epoch, Yuan Shao built a turret at the southeast corner of the city and a secret gate outside the East Gate. When Cao Cao took over the city, he massively decorated the city gates and built Three Terraces at the northwest corner. The middle terrace was the highest of the Three Terraces and the building complex was south–​north symmetrical around the middle terrace. The arrangement of the Three Terraces is akin to the Three Mountains layout in terms of Taoism. Though Cao Cao did not mention Taoism explicitly, the religion’s influence was obvious judging from his poems and prose. Historical literature does not show whether the Ye city during Yuan Shao’s reign had city gatetowers, but the city did have such gatetowers in the Cao-​Wei dynasty. Upon removal of the capital, Shi Hu hailed himself Heavenly King of Great Zhao and laid out the Ye city afresh according to the “celestial phenomena,” such as building the Tower Equaling the Big Dipper. The tower was the north starting point of the urban areas’ south–​north central axis and stood due north of the Grand Court. More clearly put, it served as the guardian of the entire city according to geomancy. Some scholars have concluded in their recent studies that Chang’an should also have a south–​north central axis—​Zhangtai Street inside An Gate. The southern tip of the central axis reached the entrance to the Ziwu Ravine on the northern piedmont of the Qinling Mountains while the northern tip reached the Heaven-​Equaling Shrine of the Western Han epoch.2 The central axis of Chang’an was Zhangtai Street and the central axis of Ye city of the Eastern Han epoch was Zhangmen Street. The Heaven-​ Equaling Shrine lay at the northern tip of the central axis in the Western Han epoch and the Tower Equaling the Big Dipper lay at the same position in the

Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout  229 Later Zhao. The names “Zhangtai (章台)” and “Zhangmen (章门)” sound similar, and so do the names “Heaven-​Equaling (天齐)” and “Equaling the Big Dipper (齐斗)” because they observed the same ritual regulation and philosophy. Shi Hu even transformed the earthen Ye city into a brick city, added a tower every 100 steps on the city walls, and renamed the four gates according to the four directions and seasons. The Heavenly King lived in the imperial palace. When he left the city from east (spring), he passed through Jianchun Gate (建春门); when he left the city from south (summer), he passed through Yangxia Gate (阳夏门); when he left the city from west (autumn), he passed through Jinming Gate; and when he left the city from north (winter), he passed through Guangde Gate (广德门). In this way, Later Zhao’s Ye capital layout was made neater than that of Yuan Shao’s reign or the Cao-​Wei dynasty. Apart from rebuilding the walls of North Ye City, Eastern Wei, and Northern Qi built a protrusion (雍城) outside the east wall and added a defense work to the northeast part of North Ye City. The walls and battlements of South Ye City resembled a turtle and an elephant, with abutments being added to the walls. Zhuming Gate, that is the due south gate, was concave-​shaped, flanked by a pair of gatetowers. The city walls were rammed to the greatest extent, which is confirmed through the water seepage test of archaeologists. The outer surface of the walls is a steep, straight slope while the inner surface is a gentle one. It is obvious that the architects had exhausted their wisdom in improving the defense of the Ye city. From the Cao-​Wei dynasty to the Eastern Wei and Northern Qi dynasties, the Ye city’s layout had become neater and neater, as evidenced by increasing front–​rear harmony and left–​right symmetry. This trend disrupted the conventional layout of scattering palace buildings like central government offices from the Qin and Han dynasties, thereby achieving transition to a single-​ palace-​city layout. The Forbidden City, Imperial City, and Capital City were becoming increasingly different from each other, so that a homocentric rectangular layout came into being. In the Cao-​Wei dynasty, the Palace City was located north of Dongxi Boulevard at the northwest corner of Ye. West Garden, Grand Court, and Inner Court were distributed from west to east. Grand Court lying on the south–​north central axis consisted of Harem in the north, Palace for Crown Prince in the northeast, and Central Government Offices flanking the front gate of Inner Court. This layout is regular-​looking despite the buildings in the palaces not being strictly symmetrical. It does not agree with the “Outer Court-​Governance Court-​Inner Court” south–​north layout of Rite of Zhou or the layout of Xianyang, Chang’an, or Luoyang from the Qin dynasty. Of course, the left–​right arrangement and left–​right unit symmetry of the capital of the Cao-​Wei dynasty were conducted relying on the urban spatial division instead of merely copying the practice of any previous dynasty. Later Zhao redesigned the capital layout of the Cao-​Wei dynasty, changing the Inner Court of the Cao-​Wei dynasty into East Palace and removing the Harem to West Garden and the Central Government Offices to outside the Duan Gate of the Hall of Supreme Militancy and left and right

230  Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout sides of Zhongyangmen Street. Owing to limited urban space, the buildings of the Harem in West Garden were laid symmetrically along the central axis. The building complex was flanked by Hall of Resplendent Yang and Palace of Nine Efflorescences. The Palace of Nine Efflorescences is akin to the Kun-​ trigram which consists of nine lines. The Harem led south to Fengyang Gate and thus the Harem was regarded as the center of gravity of the Ye city along the Fengyangmen Street. From a bird’s eye-​view, the city’s buildings imitated celestial beings like the sun, moon, and stars, the yin-​yang interplay, and the rotation of the four seasons. Grand Court lay in the east and embodied the sun (yang); Harem lay in the west and embodied the moon (yin); the names of the four front city gates referred to the four seasons. In this way, the Ye city had developed a neater and more regular layout. Neither Eastern Wei nor Northern Qi reached the capital scale of Later Zhao, with the major projects being the Mansion of Counselor-​in-​Chief and Palace for Crown Prince built on the previous sites of Three Terraces, West Garden, and Cao-​ Wei dynasty’s Hall of Hearing Political Decisions. In the early years of the capital relocation, Yuan Shanjian dwelt at the previous government office of Xiangzhou in West Garden. During the Northern Qi dynasty, North Palace was built and served as a guesthouse for entertaining foreign envoys. At the Hall of Supreme Militancy site of Later Zhao, the Northern Wei regime built Zhongxing Monastery and this monastery was still a Buddhist venue in the Eastern Wei and Northern Qi dynasties. East of the monastery stood the Mansion of Counselor-​in-​Chief. The Northern Qi dynasty transformed the mansion into the Palace for Crown Prince. History indicates that the North Ye City of the Northern Qi had North Palace and Palace for Crown Prince, but seemingly had no Palace City. During the drilling for the North City site, archaeologists did not find the wall of the Palace City, which seems to be a proof in this regard. South Ye City basically maintained the capital layout of the Northern Qi dynasty, but its layout design and the location of Palace City were far more regular than Luoyang. The Palace City lay in the center of the northern part of South Ye City, with its left and right sides being strictly symmetrical in terms of two-​form balance of the supreme ultimacy. Xing Shao (邢劭) praised it in “New Palace Rhapsody (新宫赋),” “The Front Hall was built as per the two-​form principle; the [Left and Right] Side-​Rooms were erected imitating the three mountains.” The two forms are yin and yang and the three mountains are Yingzhou, Penglai, and Fangzhang. The main building of the Palace City was the Hall of Supreme Ultimacy flanked by East Hall and West Hall; Hall of Brilliant Sunlight, the main building of Inner Court, lay behind the Hall of Supreme Ultimacy and was flanked by East Pavilion and West Pavilion. Yong Lane lay behind the Hall of Manifested Yang and led to the Nine Courtyards of the Harem. The Nine Courtyards each held a position, forming the Kun-​trigram. Rear Garden lay behind the Harem. Outer Court, Inner Court, Harem, and Rear Garden were laid out from south to north, each being left–​right symmetrical; yet these building complexes formed an organic whole. This marked the

Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout  231 consummation of the Palace City layout from the Wei dynasty through the Southern and Northern Dynasties and the genesis of a new arrangement.3 Central axis and checkboard-​shaped streets were determined along with the development of the Ye city. The Cao-​Wei and Later Zhao dynasties used Zhongyangmen Street as the south–​north central axis, so that the crisscrossed streets formed a checkerboard-​shaped layout. North Ye City was divided into two halves, namely the following function zones by Dongxi Boulevard between Jianchun Gate and Jinming Gate, specifically, two function zones: (1) Palace Complex and Aristocratic Quarters in the north. (2) Residential Quarters and Markets in the south. The roads behind the four front city gates sprawled across the urban areas, with every two neighboring roads being perpendicular to each other. They not only constituted the main arteries within the city, but also severed the interlaced spaces into smaller rectangular and square residential units or markets for the sake of administration and public security. In its early period, the Eastern Wei regime built the South Ye City in stricter accordance with the central axis and checkerboard-​ shaped street layout. Archaeological exploration has shown that the South Ye City basically used the same central axis as North Ye City, which implies that there was an overall layout plan for the former’s expansion and the latter’s reconstruction. The checkerboard-​ shaped street brought the quarter-​ neighborhood system new changes. Both Cao-​Wei and Later Zhao dynasties set up quarters within the city in line with the capital design of the Eastern Han epoch. In the later Eastern Wei and Northern Qi dynasties, the capital had quarters and neighborhoods. The “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye” chapter of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period says, South Ye City “perhaps has more than 400 neighborhoods.” It appears that the municipal grassroots administration fell into two classes, namely quarter (里) and neighborhood (坊). Since a neighborhood was fairly small, there were more than 400 neighborhoods. Northern Qi continued the quarter-​neighborhood system of Northern Wei, which reflects the administrative shift from quarter to neighborhood. Ye city’s overall layout, Palace City layout, central axis, checkerboard-​shaped street distribution, and quarter-​neighborhood system learned from the capital layouts of the Qin dynasty, and directly inspired the layouts of the later Sui and Tang dynasties. In brief, they played a transitional role in the development of ancient Chinese capital city layout.

II.  The “Ye—​Daxing—​Chang’an” capital lineage Chen Yinke (陈寅恪) said in “Ritual: Capital Buildings (礼仪·附都城建筑),” Draft Concise Discussion of the Origins of the Sui–Tang System of Institutions, “The Palace City of the Tang Dynasty inherited the practice of the previous Sui dynasty, but Daxing, namely the capital of the Sui dynasty, was influenced by Luoyang of Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei and South Ye City of Eastern Wei and Northern Qi.” A Japanese scholar summed up Chen’s viewpoint as the “Ye—​ Daxing—​ Chang’an” capital lineage

232  Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout (“邺—​大兴—​长安”中国中世纪都城系统).4 In terms of institutional inheritance and development, Chen Yinke said that the capital lineage is part of the Northern Wei’s Taihe culture. Here I want to argue that his opinion that “the new capital layout of Luoyang during the Taihe period should be attributed to the pragmatism of Han Chinese in the Hexi region” does not hold true, despite his insightful view and method. Before taking concrete actions, the Northern Wei regime had discussed the site of their new capital several times. The lord and courtiers did not reach a consensus on this point. After discussions, Emperor Xiaowen decided to make Luoyang their new capital. There is every reason to believe that the planning principle and conception should be determined by the emperor who was at the core of the proposal for capital removal. The layout of Luoyang in the Taihe period was fairly similar to Pingcheng and North Ye City, restoring some ritual building names and place names of the Wei and Jin dynasties while being affected by Jiankang, the capital of the Southern Dynasties. The “Biographies of Wei Barbarians (魏虏列传)” chapter in volume 57 of Book of Southern Qi says, in the ninth year of the Yongming period of Southern Qi, i.e. the 15th year (491) of Taihe period of Northern Wei, Li Daogu (李道固) and Jiang Shaoyou (蒋少游) were assigned envoys. Jiang Shaoyou was resourceful and secretly observed the layout of the capital’s palace complex. Cui Yuanzu (崔元祖) of Qinghe told Emperor Shizu, “Shaoyou is my nephew and as ingenious as Gongshu Ban (公输班), the forefather of Chinese carpentry. In the Song dynasty, he fell into the hands of the barbarians and served as Great Craftsman. This time he acts as associate envoy and I believe he will model the layout of our imperial palace. How can we allow him to commit such an act of effrontery? I request to keep him here and let the envoy return to report his task.” The emperor did not consent to the request because that would do no good to the mutual friendship. Jiang Shaoyou, a native of Anle, took charge of designing all palaces and halls of the Northern Wei. At that time, Emperor Xiaowen indeed intended to remove the capital and assigned Jiang Shaoyou to observe the palace layout of Jiankang in preparation for planning of the construction of Luoyang. This quote shows that the palace of Luoyang of Northern Wei was obviously affected by the Southern Dynasties. By comparing Luoyang and Guzang, we can see clearly that the two cities are very different in form, layout, and other aspects. The Chang’an of Fu Jian and Yao Qin was heavily affected by Ye of Later Zhao and Guzang (姑臧) was affected by Chang’an. It is reasonable to trace the origin of the capital layout appropriately. Li Chong was a native of Liangzhou, and many astrologers and mathematicians came from the Western Regions and influenced the palace buildings of Pingcheng and Luoyang. But it is arbitrary to claim that the new layout of Luoyang as the capital of the Taihe period should be attributed to Hexi Han Chinese simply because Li Chong’s

Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout  233 family was in the Hexi region. Chen Yinke attached excessive importance to Li Chong’s clan lineage and culture and the correlation between Luoyang of Northern Wei and Guzang of Liangzhou while neglecting the role of Emperor Xiaowen and the direct connection between Luoyang and Pingcheng/​North Ye City. For this reason, his view is inadequate and should be corrected. The layout of Luoyang in the Taihe period of Northern Wei was inspired by Pingcheng and North Ye City, and in turn influenced South Ye City, Daxing and Chang’an. Chen Yinke said, Of those involved in building the Sui dynasty’s new capital ‘Daxing,’ Gao Jiong’s (高颎) father Gao Bin (高宾) served the Northern Qi court, Liu Long (刘龙) also served the same court, and Gao Longyi (高龙义), also known as Gao Yi (高义) was descended from the Northern Qi royalty except Helou Zigan (贺娄子干) and Yuwen Kai (宇文恺); all of them belonged to the Shandong clique and were exposed to the cultures of Luoyang and Ye city. Though “Biography of Gao Jiong (高颎传),” The Book of Sui says the new capital’s ‘layout was mainly contrived by Gao Jiong, the ‘Biography of Yuwen Kai (宇文恺传)’ argues that ‘Gao Jiong provided the master plan and Yuwen Kai formulated various specific plans.’ Tang Institutions of Six Administrative Divisions (唐六典)5 says “Yuwen Kai served as chief architect and Gao Jiong merely took charge of overall planning nominally. … It is unnecessary for us to probe into Gao Jiong and his family background. Helou Zigan served as deputy director for construction of the new capital in the sixth month of the third year of the Kaihuang period, he led troops to attack Tujue (突厥) in the same year. Obviously, his short-​lived service is unworthy of discussing. During his service in the Northern Qi, Liu Long took charge of building halls and gained a prominent position.” The Book of Sui has no ‘Biography of Gao Longyi,’ but the “Biography of Gao Lingshan (高灵山传)” chapter of The Book of Northern Qi (北齐书) and the chapter of the same name of History of Northern Dynasties (北史) include an attachment depicting the deeds of Gao Yi. According to these two books, Gao Yi served as Vice Minister of the Court of the Imperial Treasury (太府少卿)6 in the middle of the Kaihuang period and thus the Gao Longyi of the same title mentioned in the Imperial Edict on Construction of New Capital on the bingshen (丙申) day of the sixth day of the second year of the Kaihuang period should undoubtedly be the same person. The layout of South Ye City—​the successor of Luoyang in the Taihe period was introduced into the Sui dynasty by Liu Long and Gao Yi. Yuwen Kai had nothing to do with the Shandong region. Why did Yuwen Kai solely take charge of the city design? It is hard to explain this at first thought, but in my view it is not surprising that Yuwen Kai, Yan Pi (阎毗), and He Chou (何稠) were engaged in the design process because they were technical experts in the Sui dynasty.7 As a matter of fact, Liu Long was also expert in this regard and enjoyed prestige for building the Three Terraces. As Great Craftsman, he mainly conducted architectural design and technical

234  Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout application. Gao Yi served as Inspector and this post seemingly supervised engineering techniques, project progress, building material selection, and construction quality. Though they were consultants in terms of the layout of Daxing, there is some controversy over whether it is they who introduced the layout of South Ye City into the Sui dynasty. As the capital of Eastern Wei and Northern Qi, the Ye city was burnt down by Yang Jian in the sixth month of the second year (580) of the Daxiang period of Northern Zhou. The next year Yang Jian declared himself emperor and founded the Sui dynasty. In the sixth month of the second year (582) of the Kaihuang period, Yang Jian, namely Emperor Wendi issued an imperial edict stipulating that a new capital should be built. There was a mere span of two years from the burning down of the previous capital to the construction of the new capital, which shows that Yang Jian had had a thought-​out plan. Basically, the emperor wanted to build the unique capital of the Heaven’s Son, and the Ye city, a symbol of the previous dynasty, must be burnt down. Yet there was another reason—​the city was the home to the previous Shandong clique opposing the rising Guanzhong clique. Despite its burning-​down, the Ye city’s building layout and architectural philosophy were inherited by Yang Jian’s Daxing city. The overall layout design should be attributed to Yang Jian and jointly conducted by Yuwen Kai, Liu Long, and Gao Yi. Especially, the buildings of the Imperial City was totally based on Yang Jian’s ideas. Capital construction has been the utmost concern for all past dynasties. Site selection, capital construction, capital removal, city scale, and city layout were all dependent on the emperor. Cao Cao made Ye the capital, Shi Hu removed the capital to Ye, and Gao Huan built the South Ye City in line with the same thought. So, there was no exception to Yang Jian. When the Northern Zhou subdued the Northern Qi, general Yang Jian attacked Ye, which indicates that he should know well the city’s layout. He employed Gao Jiong, Liu Long, and Gao Yi among others expert at the buildings and layout of Ye to build Daxing, which obviously aimed to implement the concept behind the capital construction. Chen Yinke focused on Liu Long and Gao Yi, instead of Yang Jian, which suggests his neglect of the central figure of the construction of Daxing. Daxing of the Sui dynasty can almost be regarded the same as Chang’an of the Tang dynasty because the latter continued every aspect of the layout of the former but for the name. Then which characteristics of Ye were inherited by Daxing and Chang’an? Let’s make a comparison between them. According to Record of Chang’an (长安志), in terms of construction of Daxing city, “Palace City came first, Imperial City second and Barbican third.” Obviously, this sequence coincides with the construction sequence of South Ye City. Daxing/​ Chang’an was “18 li and 115 steps long westward and 15 li and 175 steps wide northward,”8 forming a rectangle similar to North Ye City. For instance, their gates were given the same or similar names. Dongxi Boulevard in front of the Palace City of North Ye City connected Jianchun Gate (建春门) and Jinming Gate, and South Ye City’s due south gate was Zhuming Gate (朱明门) and Qixia Gate (启夏门) stood east of Zhuming Gate. Likewise, Dongxi Street

Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout  235 stood in front of the Imperial City of Daxing/​Chang’an, connecting Chunming Gate (春明门) and Jinguang Gate (金光门); the Imperial City’s front gate was Zhuque Gate, the front gate of the south barbican was Mingde Gate (明德门) and Qixia Gate lay east of Mingde Gate. These similarities show that the Ye city and Daxing/​Chang’an followed the same philosophy, that is, the four front city gates stand for the four directions and the four seasons. Some scholar argued that the layout and city gate names of Daxing/​Chang’an represent the “earth (大地)” and “four mythical creatures (四象)” in Huainanzi. Huainanzi says, “Beyond the nine provinces are eight distant regions, … Beyond the eight distant regions are eight outlying regions, … Beyond the eight outlying regions are eight ultimate regions.”9 “The East is Wood. Its god is Tai Hao (太皞).” “His assistant is Gou Mang (句芒). He grasps the compass and governs spring. … The South is Fire. Its god is Yan Di (炎帝). His assistant is Zhu Ming (朱明). He grasps the balance beam and governs summer. His spirit is Sparkling Deluder [Mars]. His animal is the Vermilion Bird. The West is Metal. Its god is Shao Hao (少昊). His assistant is Ru Shou (蓐收). The North is Water. Its god is Zhuan Xu (颛顼). His assistant is Xuan Ming (玄冥). He grasps the weight and governs winter. His spirit is Chronograph Star [Mercury]. His animal is the Dark Warrior (玄武).”10 For these reasons, Daxing/​Chang’an took the form of a transverse rectangle, with four city gates being named Chunming, Qixia, Mingde, and Jinguang. A further observation of the specific similarities between Daxing/​Chang’an and Ye indicate that the former is not a mere imitation of the latter and that they are in fact different brainchildren of the same architectural philosophy. This forms the foundation for the “Ye—​Daxing—​Chang’an” capital lineage. As such, Daxing/​Chang’an placed the Palace City in the center of their northern part to imitate the Purple Tenuity Enclosure, which lies in the due north of the celestial sphere. From the Spring and Autumn period, astrologists argued that the North Pole (北极), i.e. North Star (北辰) lies in the center of the sky. Confucius said, “Political government should be virtue-​oriented, like the North Star that lies out there and all other stars go around it.” Guo Pu (郭璞) added, “North Pole lies in the center of the sky and rectifies the four seasons.” Zheng Xuan (郑玄) wrote, “North Pole refers to the North Star.” Li Xun (李巡) said, “North Pole refers to the heart of the sky and lies in the north. It helps rectify the four seasons and is also known as North Star.”11 In the eighth year (634) of the Zhenguan period, the Tang court built Daming Palace outside the northeast city wall of the Palace City. The term “Daming (大明)” points to the sun. Examples of Refined Usage claims, “The sun is called a blazing spirit (耀灵). It has other names like Zhuming/Vermilion Brightness (朱明), East Lord (东君), Daming/​ Great Light (大明), and Yang Bird (阳鸟).” An Han dynasty bronze mirror is inscribed with words like “As the sun comes out, the whole world will be exposed to great light.” The Daming Palace functions like the protrusion on the wall of the North Ye City. Gao Huan built a protrusion on the northeast wall of North Ye City and Northern Zhou built Sunlight Temple (日光寺) on the protrusion. There was also a Daming Palace within the Palace City

236  Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout of South Ye City. It seems that Daming Palace in South Ye City is one of the sources for the naming of Daming Palace in Chang’an. In terms of master plan, palace city location, and city layout, Daxing/​Chang’an is fairly similar to North Ye City and especially the Ye of Later Zhao. The main difference consists in the addition of the Imperial City by Emperor Wendi of the Sui dynasty. Song Minqiu (宋敏求) said in “Imperial City of Tang (唐皇城)” in volume 7 of Record of Chang’an, From the Han dynasty through the Jin, Qi, Liang, and Chen dynasties, some people lived between the palaces. Emperor Wendi of Sui thought it inconvenient for those people to get in or go out and thus allowed merely construction of government offices or official mansions within the Imperial City. No other people were allowed to live therein. As a result, the private and public quarters were divided clearly and strict regulations were enacted in this regard. This arose from the new policy of Emperor Wendi. Moreover, the terrain of North Ye City is low in the northwest and high in the southeast while the terrain of Daxing/​Chang’an is just the other way round. Cao Cao built Three Terraces in the northwest of Ye and dug Xuanwu Pond outside the city and Later Zhao built a Tower of East Light at the southeast corner of the city; conversely, Emperor Wendi of the Sui dynasty dug Qujiang Pond at the southeast corner of Daxing as a city hideaway. There was a Forbidden Garden (禁园) north of Daxing/​Chang’an, which seems similar to the Hualin Garden outside the north wall of Later Zhao’s North Ye City or the vast Deer Garden behind the Palace City of Northern Wei’s Pingcheng. The street layout of Daxing/​Chang’an basically inherited that of South Ye City, setting up East Market and West Market at the east and west sides of Nanbei Street in front of the Imperial City. All roads and streets were crisscrossed neatly. To the south of the Imperial City, there were ten east neighborhoods, ten west neighborhoods, nine south neighborhoods, and nine north neighborhoods; to the east/​west of the Imperial City, there were 12 neighborhoods. The two markets occupied four neighborhoods. The total number of neighborhoods amounted to 110. In the 14th year of Kaiyuan period, the two neighborhoods in the east were used as the location of Palace of Ascendant Felicity (兴庆宫).12,13 After the Kaiyuan period, the number of neighborhoods in Chang’an was fixed as 108 consisting of 55 neighborhoods west of Zhuquemen Street and 53 neighborhoods east of Zhuquemen Street.14 The “Records of Palaces and Halls of Ye” chapter of Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period says that South Ye City had more than 400 neighborhoods. The smaller the city, the more neighborhoods there would be. Chang’an/​Daxing was much

Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout  237 larger than Ye city and had fewer neighborhoods. As to the number and arrangement of Daxing’s neighborhoods, scholars have different opinions. Qing-​dynasty scholar Xu Song (徐松) said, “East of the Imperial City stood the Eastern Part consisting of three neighborhoods; west of the Imperial City stood the Western Part consisting of nine neighborhoods, which embody the nine-​thorough (九逵) system of Rite of Zhou. Scroll of Three Rites (三礼图) of the Sui dynasty includes a picture of the system.”15 Contemporary scholar Yi Ren (逸人) claimed that the ten neighborhoods of eastern and western parts represent the ten daos (道)16 and 13 neighborhoods of south and north stand for the 13 regions (州).17 Shang Minjie (尚民杰) thought the Palace City lay in the northern center and imitated the “North Star,” with 108 neighborhoods representing the stars and the commanderies and counties. This arrangement embodies the political thought of facing the south to govern the world and incorporating south into north.18 Despite their different interpretations, all the scholars noticed the connection between the design concept of Daxing/​ Chang’an and the celestial beings. Ancient Chinese designed buildings of capital cities according to celestial beings, which explains why the capital layout had become more and more regular. Chen Yinke noticed the Ye—​Daxing—​ Chang’an lineage and analyzed that it should be part of Taihe culture from a ritual regulation point of view. But actually, behind the layout regulation lies profound thought. The Ye—​Daxing—​Chang’an lineage has been regarded as a system because it involves three points: First, the three capitals had the same or similar buildings. Second, the layout of Ye inspired Daxing and Daxing directly influenced Chang’an. Third, their layout designs followed the same philosophy. If merely the first and second points are realized, it will be difficult to understand or explain those different characteristics of the three capitals. And if the three points are understood, it will be easy to explain the correlation between the three capitals in an all-​round manner. In Chen Yinke’s opinion, the west–​east distribution of Palace Discipline Service (掖宫), Court Palace (朝宫), and East Palace (东宫) of Daxing and later Chang’an is similar to the Ye palace of Later Zhao. Chen Yinke did not notice the correlation between Ye and Daxing/​Chang’an because he too heavily relied on the so-​called institutional inheritance. Also, Daxing and Chang’an’s temple names like Zongchi Temple (总持寺), Zhuangyan Temple (庄严寺), Miaosheng Convent (妙胜尼寺), Zoroastrian Temple (袄寺), and Tower of East Light19 sound similar to those temple names in the Ye city. This is another piece of evidence of the presence of the “Ye—​Daxing—​Chang’an” capital layout lineage. The layout of Ye city influenced not only Daxing and Chang’an, but also Luoyang during the same period. The “Biography of Dou Chi (窦炽传)” in volume 30 of The Book of Zhou (周书) says, Dou Chi, styled Guangcheng, was a native of Pingling (平陵), Fufeng. He was strict and resourceful. … When he was little, Dou Chi learned Mao’s Commentaries on the Book of Poetry and The Spring and Autumn

238  Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout Annals and the Tradition of Mr Zuo (左氏春秋) from Fan Yangqi (范阳祁). Therefore, he gained a general knowledge of these classics. As the Qi was conquered, the ruling Emperor [Wudi] summoned Dou Chi to tour around the palace in Xiangzhou. … Later when Emperor Xuandi took the throne, he planned to build the East Capital and assigned him as Grand Supervisor (大监). The layout of each and every palace or garden was dependent on the supervisor. … As Yang Jian assisted the emperor in state affairs, the construction of Luoyang palace was stopped. It is reasonable to argue that Luoyang of Northern Zhou modeled itself on the Ye city. Despite its incomplete imitation, this practice laid the groundwork for later Sui and Tang dynasties’ construction of Luoyang as East Capital.

III.  Ye city and the layout of North Korea and South Korea’s ancient capitals In the fifth century, China brought new changes to North Korea and South Korea’s capitals, such as the barbican and neighborhood-​quarter system. From 552 to 586, Goguryeo built Pyeongyang which consists of Outer City, Middle City, Inner City, and North City. The inscription on the city wall rock indicates that the Inner City was built in 566 and the Outer City was built in 569, and the Barbican was built even later. The new capital sprawled from one point of the Moranbong Peak (牡丹峰) of Geumsusan Mountain (锦秀山), past the Rock Cliff (清流壁), and along the north bank of the Taedong River (大同江) to Pyongchon-​guyok (平川), and spread northeast along the Pothong River (普通江), past Ansan (安山), Mansudae Grand Monument (万寿台), Ulmil Pavilion (乙密台), and to the other point of the Moranbong Peak. With a circumference of about 23 km, the ladle-​shaped Outer City nestled on the yang (south) side of the mountain, twisting and turning along the natural terrain towards Pyongchon-​guyok. The layouts of ancient Chinese capitals influenced the barbican of Pyeongyang, thus changing Goguryeo’s well-​established practice of building one capital in the plain and the other in the mountains. For example, Gungnaeseong Fortress (国内城, the present-​day Tongdou, Ji’an city, Jilin province, China) was built in the plain and Anhakgung Palace (安鹤宫土城, the present-​ day Cheongam-​ ri Fortress along the Taedong River, North Korea) was built in the mountains. Pyeongyang’s streets were designed in a checkerboard pattern; and the quarters and neighborhoods were separated by narrow or wide roads within the barbican. The main artery was nine mu (one mu equals four Goryeo chi and one Goryeo chi equals 35 cm) wide, the main road (an east–​west path or a south–​north path between every two quarters or neighborhoods) was three mu wide and the narrowest road within a single neighborhood was one mu wide. The neighborhood took the form of a block, and every four quarters formed one neighborhood. The edge of a large neighborhood may be 500 [Goryeo] chi long and the edge of a small neighborhood may be 250 [Goryeo] chi long.20

Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout  239 Baekje’s capitals are an imitation of China’s ancient capital cities. For instance, Sabiseong, the capital between the 16th year (538) of King Seong to the 20th year (660) of King Uija, was right beside Busosanseong Fortress (扶苏山城) along the Geumgang River (锦江). This river flows southwest and turns south, meandering around the capital on three sides. The eastern section of the river is centered on the fortress and flows past Cheongsanseong Fortress (青山城) towards Naseong Fortress (罗城). The imperial palace was located on the southern piedmont of Busosanseong Fortress in the north center of the capital. Kishi Toshio pointed out, “The layout of Sabiseong continues the practice of the previous capital Ungjin. Ungjin (the present-​day Gongju, Chungcheong-​namdo) lay in the upper reaches of the Geumgang River north of Buyeogun. This ancient capital was leaned against the Gongsanseong Fortress (公山城), about 110 m high, on the Geumgang River, flanked by narrow basins within the mountains. Legend has it that there was an earthen Naseong Fortress built along the surrounding mountains around the Gongsanseong Fortress. It is presumed that the Palace should be located near the southern piedmont of Gongsanseong Fortress.”21 The Palace City has a similar location to the palace of North Ye City. Wolseong Palace used to be the palace of Gyeongju, with southern, western, and northern streets forming a checkerboard. There were block-​neighborhoods (条坊) lying within the streets. In the 1980s or 1990s, archaeologists conducted a full-​scale excavation of the capital. The results were summed up as the two-​volume Gyeongju, the Capital of Silla by Gyeongju National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage. The first volume consisting of illustrations was printed in December 2001 and the second volume consisting of writings was published in December of the following year. Gaeseong consisted of Palace City, Imperial City, and Bailey. The Imperial City was located in the northwest of Gaeseong, with its north wall and west wall being referred to as the Bailey. The Palace City lay in the center of the southern Imperial City, with four gates, one on each side: Swngpingmun Gate (升平门) in the south, Donghwamun Gate (东华门) in the east, Siwamun Gate (西华门) in the west, and Shoanumun Gate (玄武门) in the north. The Imperial City had 20 gates (including Gwanghwamun Gate) and two water gates: First, Tongyangmun Gate (通阳门), Jukemun Gate (朱雀门), Nanseonmun Gate (南熏门), Anciangmun Gate (安祥门), and Girenmun Gate (归仁门) were distributed on the east city wall east of Gwanghwamun Gate (广化门). Second, Yingqiumun Gate (迎秋门), Uiuimun or Iimun Gate (宜义门), Bionhwahanenmun Gate (长平门), Tondemun Gate (通德门), and Geonhwamun Gate (乾化门) were distributed on the west wall. Third, Jinyaomun Gate (金耀门) and Taehomun Gate (泰和门) were distributed on the north wall. Fourth, Sandongmun Gate (上东门), Hepingmun Gate (和平门), Georgungmun Gate (朝宗门), Irenmun Gate (宜仁门), Chengyangmun Gate (青阳门), Shoanumun Gate (玄武门), and Bixiaomun Gate (北小门) were distributed on the east wall. Fifth, two water gates were distributed near to Gwanghwamun Gate (广化门) and Irenmun Gate (宜仁门) respectively.22 The

240  Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout layout indicates that the capital was actually composed of Palace City, Imperial City, Inner City, and Outer City. The Inner City was a long stripe distributed from south to north and divided into two halves by the East–​West Wall, with the southern half being known as the Imperial City. But both halves markedly reflect the characteristics of the ancient Chinese capital layout. With Hanyang being the capital of the Kingdom of Joseon, its palace city lay south of Baegak Mountain (白岳山) in the northwestern part of the capital, facing the south. Jinan Avenue (直南大道, the present-​day Sejongno Street), the widest of its kind, lay in front of Gwanghwamun Gate (光化门), the front gate of the capital, flanked by the government offices for the six executive ministries of protocol-​foreign affairs, finance, education-​examination, defense, justice, and personnel.23 As per the regulation of “Ancestral Temple to the Left and Altar of the Soil and Grain to the Right” in Record of Trades, the king built the temple east by south of Gyeongbokgung Palace and the altar west by south of the palace. The markets near Sungnyemun Gate (崇礼门) to the south and Heunginjimun Gate (兴仁门) to the east have evolved into the present-​day markets adjacent to the two gates. Relying on different terrains, the buildings of the capital did not follow the same direction. Main palaces and ritual buildings like Gyeongbokgung Palace (景福宫), Ancestral Temple, Changdeokgung Palace (昌德宫), Confucius Temple, and Sungkyunkwan (成均馆) faced south; Changgyeonggung Palace (昌庆宫), Gyeonghuigung Palace (庆熙宫), and Altar of the Soil and Grain faced east. For directional and geographical reasons, Sungnyemun Gate and Heunginjimun Gate became the most vital gateways. The main artery was East–​West Avenue (东西大道, now called Bell Street) from the Gyeonghuigung palace near the center of the west city wall to Heunginjimun Gate. All south–​north main roads were connected to the avenue, forming a crisscrossed network. Within the checkerboard-​shaped street blocks, there were neighborhoods like Anggwopang (安国坊), Yangdeopang (阳德坊), Lendapang (仁达坊), Kwanlenpang (宽仁坊), Loteoseupang (莲花坊), Changsanpang (彰善坊), Gwangtongpang (广通坊), Mingzhepang (明哲坊), and Hwanghwapang (皇华坊); outside the city, there were many quarters like Gongdeokri (孔德里), Zandari (细桥里), and Muldalimiri (水铁里). Actually, there was no neighborhood building, both neighborhood and quarter were subdistrict administrative units. Bukhansanseong Fortress (北汉山城) and Seoseong (西城) stood north and northwest of Hanyang city respectively, being built on local geographical conditions and known as satellite towns of the city. Judging from the history of South Korea and North Korea, their ancient capitals have learned four points from the ancient Chinese capital layout: First, the bailey or barbican buildings, the palace city, the imperial city, and the barbican were all concentric, like those of Pyeongyang, Gyeongju, Gaeseong, and Hanyang. Second, the Palace City was located northwest of the capital like that of North Ye City, and adopted the layout of building the Court in front and the Harem at rear. In the Court, the main building was flanked by East Hall,

Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout  241 East Corridor and West Hall, West Corridor. This distribution first emerged in South Ye City and vanished after the Sui and Tang dynasties. However, the imperial cities of South Korea and North Korea’s ancient capitals have maintained this distribution to this day. Sajeongjeon Hall (思政殿), the main hall of Gyeongbokgung Palace’s Inner Court was flanked by Manchunjeon Hall (万春殿) and Cheonchujeon Hall (千秋殿), quite like the East Pavilion and West Pavilion flanking the Hall of Brilliant Yang of South Ye City. This agrees well with Xing Shao’s line in New Palace Rhapsody, The [Left and Right] Side-​Rooms were erected flanking the main hall, which embody the Three Taoist Mountains. However, this form can be found nowhere in the present-​day Imperial Palace of Beijing. Third, Market in front and Court in rear. The markets usually stood in the southern part of the capitals of the Three Kingdoms of ancient Korea, which is of similar design to North Ye City of the Wei and Jin dynasties, Luoyang of Northern Wei, South Ye City of Eastern Wei and Northern Qi, Daxing of Sui and Chang’an of Tang. Despite that, this layout goes against the design envisioned in Record of Trades. Fourth, the checkerboard-​shaped street layout and neighborhood-​quarter setup. The capitals from Pyeongyang to Hanyang all adopted this layout system. Especially in Pyeongyang, each neighborhood is broken down into four subneighborhoods and four neighborhoods constitute one quarter. In other words, there were 16 subneighborhoods. The capital’s neighborhood-​quarter distribution is similar to that of Chang’an of the Tang dynasty. But actually, Pyeongyang appeared earlier than Daxing or Chang’an, which means that its quarter-​neighborhood system was borrowed from South Ye City. According to The Book of Northern Qi, Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla kept in contact with Northern Qi; Goguryeo in particular had close touch with it. Nevertheless, there is little literature concerning the quarter-​neighborhood system of South Ye City. Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture of the Jiajing period claims that South Ye City had more than 400 neighborhoods, but none of their names is presently known. Pyeongyang’s quarter-​neighborhood layout provides adequate evidence of the layout system of South Ye City and confirms that Daxing/​ Chang’an inherited the neighborhood system from South Ye City. On the other hand, North Korea and South Korea’s ancient capitals are different from the “Ye—​ Daxing—​ Chang’an” capital lineage. Because of imitation of the celestial beings, Ye, Daxing, and Chang’an each showcased regular layouts and faced south, being symmetrical about the central axis. In contrast, those ancient Korean capitals focused on geomancy and usually lay south of a mountain and north of a river; the city wall zigzagged its away along the hill and the river and thus looked irregular; both the Palace City and the Imperial City faced south; their central axes were usually short; Outer Court and Government Offices were distributed along the central axis,

242  Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout but Outer City may face east and not necessarily have the same direction as the Imperial City or the Palace City. In this way, the whole capital city did not have a clear central axis and its symmetry was not strict. These characteristics can be found in the Ye city of the pre-​Qin era and Qin and Han dynasties. Moreover, most capitals leaned against a mountain, with mountains lying to the left and right and in the south. And there was a river surrounding the city. In a word, mountains and rivers, and the city blend into each other. The surrounding natural environment of the capital cities were amiable. Obviously, South Korea and North Korea’s ancient capitals borrowed elements from the layout of Ye and Chang’an, but also integrated the practice of the capitals the pre-​Qin era in terms of site selection with the consideration of the local natural conditions. In this way, they formed a characteristic capital building layout, attaining fairly high achievements in science, aesthetics, and art among other fields.

IV.  The layout of the Ye city and ancient Japanese capitals Ye city’s layout had a tremendous influence on ancient Japanese capitals like Fujiwara-​kyo and Heijo-​kyo. In the eighth year (694) of Nara, Empress Jito built Fujiwara-​kyo in line with South Ye City. Fujiwara-​kyo consists of Palace City (Inner City) and Bailey (Outer City). The Palace City was located in the northern center of the capital, encompassed by streets and buildings. The city layout is symmetrically regular. Fujiwara-​kyo took the form of a rectangle, which is about 3,086 m in length from south to north and about 2,118 m in width from east to west. The whole capital faced south, with the Suzaku Boulevard (朱雀大路) in front of the Palace City serving as the south–​ north central axis. The central axis divided the capital into the Left Capital spreading to the east and the Right Capital sprawling to the west. There were six east–​west roads in the south and six south–​north roads parallel to Suzaku Boulevard, which looks as neat as a checkerboard. Japanese scholars dubbed such layout as “Jo-​Bo system (条坊制).” The “jo” refer to the street block grids scattered from east to west while the “bo” point to those street block grids (neighborhoods) scattered from south to north. All in all, the Left Capital and Right Capital had 12 jos from south to north and eight bos from east to west. Every grid represented a bo and seemed to be a rough square of 263 m or so edge. Within each bo, there were two crisscrossed paths, each being about 5.4 m wide; therefore, each subgrid was one tsubo, and four tsubo equaled one bo. Suzaku Boulevard south of the Palace City was flanked by East Market and West Market, each occupying one bo. In addition, Fujiwara-​ kyo had a similar design to South Ye Palace, with Outer Court, Harem, and Back Garden being located from south to north. Akiyama Hideo said, “The Fujiwara palace has close kinship with South Ye Palace. More clearly put, there are many important similarities between these two palaces.”24 He also said, “Fujiwara-​kyo was directly influenced by the palace layout of Sui and Tang dynasties and abided by the construction principle of Ye palace.”25

Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout  243 Heijo-​kyo was first built in the first year (708) of Wado of Empress Gemmei-​ tenno, slightly later than Fujiwara-​kyo. In the third year of Wado, the empress removed the capital to Heijo-​kyo. Kishi Toshio said, When proposing the scheme of restoring the Fujiwara-​kyo, I discovered there are unexpectedly close connections between Fujiwara-​ kyo and Heijo-​kyo, which should come from a well-​thought-​out plan. In other words, Heijo-​kyo copied the Fujiwara-​kyo north of the Nara basin by moving northward along the Nakatsu-​michi Road (中道) and Shimotsu-​ michi Road (下道) and turning west based on the lower road and expanding the east–​west width twice as original. Nonetheless, the south–​ north length became 1.5 times higher than original by reducing the 12 jos to 9 jos. For this reason, it is fair to say that Heijo-​kyo was three times as large as Fujiwara-​kyo by increasing the length and width by twice of Fujiwara-​kyo’s length and width. These two capitals show a marked line of lineage in terms of palace city location, jobo-​sei, street layout, and temple location: (1) The north wall of the palace of Fujiwara-​kyo was two jos away from the north wall of the capital and the southernmost jo was narrower than others due to the terrain. Heijo-​kyo deleted two jos in the north and one jo in the south. The north wall of the Palace City was the north wall of the capital. Besides, the Palace City expanded half a jo, with the expansion being the remaining two blocks in the north of Fujiwara-​kyo. (2) Each bo of Heijo-​kyo was divided into 16 wards (町) and the 16 wards were separated by three roads on each direction (east–​west and south–​north). In Heijo-​kyo, each bo was divided into four wards by two crisscrossed roads. Each bo of Heijo-​kyo was divided into 16 wards because this capital was twice larger than Fujiwara-​kyo. (3) The roads from Fujiwara-​kyo to the gates of the Palace City were divided into inter-​jo roads and inter-​bo roads. Heijo-​kyo imitated Fujiwara-​kyo in street layout and the former’s inter-​jo roads and inter-​bo roads were wider than the latter. (4) Daianji Temple (大安寺) at 6-​jo, 4-​bo in the Sakyo-​ku and Yakushiji Temple (药师寺) at 2-​bo in the Ukyo Right Capital (右京) in Heijo-​kyo were both copied from Heijo-​kyo. A comparative study of Heijo-​kyo and Fujiwara-​ kyo shows that the former’s two temples roughly copied the locations of the latter’s two temples including Daikandaiji Temple (大官大寺) relative to the Palace City.26 Besides, the former’s East Market and West Market had similar locations to the latter’s counterparts. Conducting a comparative study, Kishi Toshio concluded, “In the past, it was generally believed that Heijo-​kyo was modeled after Chang’an of the Tang dynasty. But if Heijo-​kyo has close ties with Fujiwara-​kyo, Heijo-​kyo should owe its origin to Fujiwara-​kyo instead of Chang’an of the Tang dynasty.”27 In terms of layout design, Fujiwara-​kyo is similar to Luoyang of Northern Wei and South Ye City of Eastern Wei. For this reason, the Japanese scholar argued, “Their overall design is extremely similar to that of Luoyang of Northern Wei, South Ye City of Eastern Wei

244  Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout or Jiankang of the Southern Dynasties.”28 The Heijo-​kyu palace has a similar layout to the Ye palace of the Cao-​Wei dynasty: There were two building complexes, namely Ukyo (West Palace) and Sakyo (East Palace) in front of the Harem. The West Palace was the sacrificial venue of the emperor while the East Palace was the daily office of the emperor. The Harem was inhabited by the emperor and his empress. This palace design looks like North Ye Palace’s function division—​Middle Court (Outer Court/​Grand Court), Inner Court, and Harem. Ueda Sanae said, A comparison between the Ye city of the Cao-​Wei dynasty and the Heijo-​kyo of Japan shows that there are some interesting similarities. The Middle Court of Ye city can be deemed similar to the West Palace of Heijo-​kyo and the Inner Court can be considered similar to the East Palace. The Harem in the north can be regarded as Dairi Inner Palace (内裏) in the center. The southward street of the Middle Court can be considered tantamount to Suzaku Street of Heijo-​kyo. Kido (城户), a place name nearby 7-​jo of Suzaku Street, running south along the southern gate of the city and the Gekyo Outer Capital (外京) should be an addition or expansion. In the end, he determined, “Ye capital is the archetype of Japan’s Heijo-​kyo and Fujiwara-​kyo.”29 Akiyama Hideo, Kishi Toshio, and Ueda Sanae refuted that the Heijo-​ kyo should have been built in imitation of the Chang’an of the Tang dynasty and even traced the origin of the ancient Japanese capital layout to Ye, the capital of the Cao-​Wei dynasty, whereas Wang Zhongshu thought otherwise, “Heijo-​kyo had significant differences from Luoyang, the capital of Northern Wei. These differences show that the Japanese capital cannot be considered as imitating Luoyang.” “Heijo-​kyo’s city layout imitated not just Chang’an of the Tang dynasty and Daxing of the Sui dynasty, but also Luoyang of the Sui and Tang dynasties. However, the objective of its imitation was not Luoyang City of Northern Wei.”30 Wang Weikun (王维坤) said, “Both Fujiwara-​kyo and Heijo-​kyo imitated the Chang’an of the Sui and Tang dynasties;” “there seems no similarity between them and Luoyang of Northern Wei or South Ye City of Eastern Wei or Luoyang of Tang dynasty.” Besides, he discussed Heijo-​kyo’s imitation of Chang’an of the Sui and Tang dynasties in terms of site selection, quarter-​neighborhood design, overall layout, bailey setup, streetscape, greening, quarter-​neighborhood division, East Market and West Market arrangement, temple architecture, pond/​garden/​palace city location, and Daigakuryo Bureau of Higher Learning (大学寮) arrangement. Hence, he concluded, “Chang’an city of the Tang dynasty was the one and only archetype of Heijo-​kyo.”31 With regard to the origin of Japan’s ancient capital design, Chinese and Japanese scholars mainly compared Japanese capital cities with their Chinese counterparts in terms of capital layout, palace city location, neighborhoods,

Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout  245 markets, street arrangement, and gardening, trying to find similarities. The term “imitation or imitate” was frequently used to describe the relationship between the two countries’ ancient capitals. As a matter of fact, the capital layout heavily depended on the capital-​building philosophy. North Ye City, Luoyang, South Ye City, Daxing, Chang’an, Fujiwara-​kyo, and Heijo-​ kyo took into consideration the “celestial beings” and “geomancy,” thus having many characteristics in common. The lineage from North Ye City to Pingcheng (Northern Wei), Luoyang, South Ye City, Daxing, and Chang’an can be evidenced by historical records. However, those common characteristics do not suffice to prove that Chang’an was the prototype of Fujiwara-​kyo or Heijo-​kyo. And the term “imitation or imitate” is not accurate because the two ancient capitals of Japan borrowed the layout of Chang’an and these capitals have many similarities. Yet the two capitals’ layouts were not the same as that of Chang’an and there were still differences between them. Though there are differences of opinion between Chinese and Japanese scholars, they have reached a consensus that the two countries’ ancient capitals fall into the same lineage. Some of the scholars argued that the medieval East Asia capital layout should date back to Ye, the capital of the Cao-​Wei dynasty, which is worthy of emphasis.

V.  Formation of layout of the East Asian capital cities in the medieval period The East Asian capital cities in the medieval period have many similarities in site selection, overall planning, layout design, structuring, municipal buildings, and gardening landscapes. This trend is obvious in the ancient capital sites of China, South Korea, North Korea, and Japan. As to the Imperial Palace of the Ming and Qing dynasties and Gyeongbokgung Palace of Hanseong, the Palace City and the Barbican have the same center and boast the same architectural layout in which the left and right sides are symmetrical around the central axis. The overall structure is tight and appropriate and the design achieves a twofold goal of scientificity and artistry. Especially, the two capitals made the best use of the surrounding natural conditions, so that there is a perfect harmony between heaven, earth, and humanity, which has been sought after so much by all later generations. Why do all ancient capitals in East Asia have similar layouts? The chief reason is that they followed the same architectural philosophy. In other words, various countries integrated the heaven-​ earth-​ human harmony, emperor superiority, centralization, and feudal political hierarchy into the construction of their ancient capitals. These attempts can be summed up as an emphasis on leveraging geographical conditions. As Rite of Zhou says, When a king established the capital, [he required that]: First, the directions should be determined. Second, the capital city should be divided into urban areas (core areas inhabited by nobles) and suburban areas (arable

246  Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout lands cultivated by common people and slaves). Third, various officials should be appointed. Fourth, the highest principle should be established for the people. Gong Liu implemented this philosophy into capital construction quite early. When Gong Liu moved the capital to Bin (豳), he had already noticed geographical conditions, terrain, environment, resources, and other factors, which can be reflected by “Greater Odes of the Kingdom: Gong Liu (大雅：公刘)” of The Book of Poetry, Of generous devotion to the people was duke Liu, he went there to [the place of] the 100 springs, and saw [around him] the wide plain. He ascended the ridge on the south, and looked at a large [level] height, a height affording space for multitudes. Here was room to dwell in; here might booths be built for strangers; here he told out his mind; here he entered on deliberations.32 The Book of Poetry also says, Of generous devotion to the people was duke Liu, [his territory] being now broad and long, he determined the points of the heavens by means of the shadows; and then, ascending the ridges, he surveyed the light and the shade, viewing [also] the [course of the] streams and springs. His armies were three troops; he measured the marshes and plains; he fixed the revenue on the system of common cultivation of the fields; he measured also the fields west of the hills; and the settlement of Bin became truly great.33 Capital design and construction can be broken down into the following steps: First, select the site of the capital by surveying the terrain and exploring resources. Second, determine the scale of the capital by measuring the height of the sun-​shadow with a gnomon-​and-​ruler (圭表), identifying various directions, conducting auguring, and measuring the territory of the planned capital. All feudal dynasties followed this practice without exception. Specifically speaking, Qin dynasty’s Xianyang, Western Han epoch’s Chang’an, Eastern Han epoch’s Luoyang, Cao-​Wei dynasty’s Ye city, Wei and Jin dynasties’ Luoyang, Southern Dynasties’ Jiankang, Northern Dynasties’ Luoyang and South Ye City, Sui dynasty’s Daxing, Tang dynasty’s Chang’an

Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout  247 and Luoyang, Song dynasty’s Bianliang, Yuan dynasty’s Khanbaliq, and Ming and Qing dynasties’ Beijing all carried out this philosophy more and more strictly as time went on. Around the fourth or fifth century, Goguryeo absorbed this philosophy and spread it across the Korean Peninsula, as reflected by Goguryeo’s capital Pyeongyang, Baekje’s capitals, Silla’s capital Gyeongju, Goryeo’s capital Gaeseong, and Joseon’s capital Hanyang. Ancient Japan introduced this philosophy a bit later, the sign of which can be found in the country’s capital construction practice in the sixth century. Excavation reports and historical records of Fujiwara-​kyo, Heijo-​kyo, and Heian-​kyo provide ample evidence in this regard. It is no wonder that the same capital-​ building philosophy has produced the same city layout, which explains why a number of similar-​looking capital cities have emerged across East Asia. This capital-​building philosophy had been passed down from dynasty to dynasty, spawning different capital layout systems in the various countries of East Asia. In A Study of the History of Capital Layout in Ancient China (中国 古代都城制度史研究), Yang Kuan (杨宽) divided the development of ancient Chinese capital layout into two stages: “First, the enclosed capital stage lasted from the Qin through the Tang dynasty. Second, the open capital stage lasted from the Northern Song epoch to the Qing dynasty.”34 In his opinion, “The development of bailey-​city connection layout, quarter-​ neighborhood and markets come first in exploration of the history the capital layout system; the palace city layout comes second.” Actually, the layout designs of ancient Chinese capitals and especially those medieval capitals were centered on the palace city. The bailey-​city connection, and neighborhoods and markets were distributed around the imperial city or palace city, with their changes being subjected to overall capital planning. In brief, the central position of the forbidden palace can be weakened on no account. Or to put it another way, the architectural design of the imperial city or palace city is a top priority in capital layout. Considering this point, I’d like to divide the development of ancient Chinese capital layout design into three stages: (1) From the Pre-Qin era to the Han dynasty, the layout system emerged and the capital mainly served population gathering and centralized administration, “the city was built to protect the lord and the barbican was built for the people to live in” [Annals of Wu and Yue (吴越春秋)], with a complete bailey and clear function division. (2) From the Han and Wei to the Sui and Tang dynasties, the layout system developed, as represented by emphasis on heaven-​earth-​human harmony, lord supremacy, and centralization. Also, overall capital design was conducted and buildings were constructed in order as per the well-​established philosophy. To this end, you should first determine the central point, draw a south–​north central axis along which Inner Court, Middle Court, and Outer Court are distributed southward. This is the central part of the whole city. The left and right sides of the bailey are symmetrical around the central axis, with the palace city, the imperial city, and the bailey being concentric and the streets being shaped like a huge checkerboard. The capitals in this stage mainly served feudal governance. From the Northern Song epoch to the

248  Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout Qing dynasty, ancient capitals went through urbanization by inheriting the characteristics of the Sui–​Tang capitals and moving the central point south to the center of those previous capitals. In this way, main streets and markets sprang up along the riverside traffic hub, which indicates that the previously enclosed capitals were now broken apart and each capital became not just a political center, but also an economical, traffic, and cultural center. The greatest characteristic of the ancient Chinese capital layout consists in setting out a south–​north central axis with the imperial city/​palace city at the center, around which the bailey and neighborhoods and markets were distributed. This holds the key to the layout system of medieval Chinese capitals and our understanding of this system. Hence, the Ye city blazed a trail in medieval Chinese capital construction; this system had been passed down throughout the dynasties. The lineage is indicated in Figure 1. The capital layout lineage had been alive more than 1,700 years. This system came to its end upon the consummation of the Beijing city of the Ming and Qing dynasties. Even so, it has produced a far-​flung influence on Beijing as the capital of New China. It can be said that the present-​day Beijing’s checkerboard-​ shaped streets remain a marked remainder of the lineage system. In the fifth century, Goguryeo learned China’s capital layout system and applied it in construction of its new capital Pyeongyang from 552 to 586. The Palace City perched on a high point of the northern part of the capital and the streets consisting of quarters and neighborhoods were shaped like a checkerboard, which looks quite like Ye City or Northern Wei’s Luoyang. The construction of Baekje’s capitals in the sixth century and the construction of Gyeongju in the next century basically employed a similar layout. In the late 13th century, the Joseon dynasty moved its capital from Gaeseong to Hanyang superbly in accordance with the traditional capital-​ building thought about site selection and geographical condition utilization. Hanyang

Guzang (Former Liang and Later Liang) Ye (Cao-Wei and Sixteen States)

Pingcheng Luoyang (Northern Wei) (Northern Wei)

South Ye City (Eastern Wei and Northern Qi)

Jiankang (Southern Dynasties) Chang’an Bianliang (Tang Dynasty) (Northern Song)

Khanbaliq (Yuan Dynasty)

Beijing (Ming and Qing Dynasties)

Nanjing (Ming Dynasty)

Figure 1    

Daxing (Sui Dynasty)

Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout  249 Pyeongyang (Gorguyeo)

Gyeongju (Silla)

Gaeseong (Goryeo)

Hanyang (Joseon)

Sabiseong (Baekje)

Figure 2    

City employed the Bukhansan Mountain lying behind it as its guardian and faced Mount Nam (南山), half-​surrounded by two mountains on east and west and girdled by the Hangang River on the south. Gyeongbokgung Palace was located in the highland in the northern part of the capital, with the concept of Ancestral Temple to the left and Altar of the Soil and Grain to the right in mind; the Palace City and Government Offices were both left–​right symmetrical about the central axis, with streets looking as neat as a checkerboard. Overall, Hanyang had not just the characteristics of medieval East Asia capitals, but also the indigenous style of ancient South Korean architecture. The capital lineage from Pyeongyang to Hanseong of the Korean nation takes form as shown in Figure 2. Despite Hanseong having become a modern cosmopolis today, the old urban area lying north of the Hangang River can still remind you of its glorious past. Japan absorbed the capital-​ building philosophy of China in the late sixth century. Over a hundred years later (694), Empress Jito removed the capital from Asuka Kiyomihara palace to Fujiwara-​kyo, which was built in accordance with the Chinese capital-​building philosophy. Lying amid the Mount Miminashi (耳成山), Mount Amanokagu (香久山), Mount Unebi (亩旁山), and Mount Yoshino (吉野群山), Fujiwara-​kyo stood southward at a vital location of traffic, demonstrating a roughly similar structure to South Ye City of Eastern Wei or Northern Qi or Chang’an of Tang. Archaeology and history show that this ancient capital has deep relations with South Ye City. But how could it happen in that period? Ueda Sanae presumed that it could have been transmitted through the Korean peninsula.35 Both Chinese and Korean texts include records of exchanges between Goguryeo/​Baekje/​ Silla and Northern Dynasties. And Japan was in close touch with the Korean peninsula. Therefore, the capital-​building philosophy did not have much difficulty in spreading from the peninsula to Japan not far away. Since Fujiwara-​ kyo adopted the philosophical system on capital construction, Heijo-​kyo and Heian-​kyo followed in its footsteps. As a result, the ancient Japanese capital lineage arises as shown in Figure 3.

Fujiwara-kyo

Figure 3    

Heijo-kyo

Heian-kyo

250  Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout Guzang (Former Liang and Later Liang) Ye (Cao-Wei and Sixteen States)

Pingcheng (Northern Wei)

Luoyang (Northern Wei)

Jiankang (Southern Dynasties)

Pyeongyang (Gorguyeo)

Gyeongju (Silla)

Gaesgeon (Goryeo)

Hanyang (Joseon)

Sabiseong (Baekje) South Ye City (Eastern Wei and Northern Qi)

Daxing (Sui Dynasty) Fujiwara-kyo

Chang’an (Tang Dynasty) Heijo-kyo

Bianliang (Northern Song)

Beijing Khanbaliq (Yuan Dynasty) (Ming and Qing)

Heian-kyo

Figure 4    

Judging from this track of development, Japan introduced the capital layout and its underlying philosophy of ancient China via the Korean Peninsula between the fifth and the sixth century. After the seventh century, the country directly absorbed elements of Chang’an of the Tang dynasty. This capital tradition did not end until the capital was moved to Tokyo in 1868. The East Asian capitals in the medieval period were built according to the common philosophy. So, no wonder that they have many common characteristics. And it is these characteristics that constitute the capital lineage system shown in Figure 4. If a south–​north central axis is drawn with the palace city at its center, the left and right parts of the whole capital are symmetrical around the axis, and the streets are distributed as neatly as a checkerboard. This layout showcases the underlying thought behind the construction of the East Asian capital cities in the medieval period, but their inheritance actually is multilinear in reality. For instance, Heijo-​kyo learned not only the layout of Fujiwara-​kyo, but also that of Chang’an of the Tang dynasty; likewise, Hanyang absorbed the layout of Gaeseong as well as that of Beijing of the Ming dynasty. Anyway, Ye city is the origin of all medieval East Asian capitals.

Notes 1 Toshio Kishi (岸俊男), “Exploring the Origin of Japan’s Ancient Capitals (探寻日 本古代都城的源流),” translated by Weikun Wang (王维坤) and Zizhi Li (李自智), Archaeology and Cultural Relics (考古与文物), 4 (1998). 2 Zhaolin Wang (王兆麟), “Another Crucial Discovery in Shanxi: An Overlong South–​North Baseline Centered Around the Chang’an City of the Han Dynasty

Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout  251 (陕西又一重大考古发现：一条以汉长安城为中心的南北超长基线),” Guangming Daily (光明日报) (Beijing), Dec 13, 1993. 3 Some scholars argued that the Ye city of Eastern Wei and Northern Qi restored the South Palace and North Palace layout of the Eastern Han epoch. Those scholars made this mistake because they did not dive deeply into the layout of Ye city. 4 Sanae Ueda (上田早苗), “Gokann makki no Yeti to Weigunn (后汉末期的邺地与 魏郡),” in Nittyuu Kokusai Kyoudou Kennkyuu: Rokutyou Seiji Bunnka ni Okeru Tiiki Syakai no Sayou (日中国际共同研究：地域社会在六朝政治文化上所起的作用), Michio Tanikawa (谷川道雄) (ed.), (Kyoto: Genbunsha 玄文社, 1989), Chinese ed., 20. 5 Victor C Xiong, Historical Dictionary of Medieval China (Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press, 2008), 594. 6 Charles O Hucker, op cit, 477. 7 Yinke Chen (陈寅恪), “Ritual: Capital Buildings (礼仪·附都城建筑),” Chapter 2, Draft Concise Discussion of the Origins of the Sui—​Tang System of Institutions (隋唐制度渊源略论稿) (Beijing: Shenghuo Dushu Xinzhi Sanlian Bookstore 生活·读书·新知三联书店, 2001), 84. 8 Minjie Shang (尚民杰), “Design Philosophy of Sui-​Tang Chang’an City and Politics of the Sui and Tang Dynasties (隋唐长安城的设计思想与隋唐政治),” The Journal of Humanities (人文杂志), 1 (1991). 9 John S Major, The Huainanzi: A Guide to the Theory and Practice of Government in Early Han China (New York: Columbia University Press, 2010), 157-​158. 10 John S Major, op cit, 118–​119. 11 Baonan Liu (刘宝楠), “On Statecraft (为政),” Correct Meaning of The Analects (论语正义) (Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company 中华书局, 1957) 1, 20. 12 Zhenjun Zhang and Victor H Mair, Anthology of Tang and Song Tales: The Tang Song Chuanqi Ji of Lu Xun (Singapore: World Scientific Publishing Company, 2020), 247. 13 Linfu Li et al., “Vice Director of the Ministry of Works (工部即中员外郎),” Tang Institutions of Six Administrative Divisions (唐六典) vol 7. 14 Nianhai Shi (史念海), “Transitions in Streets and Li-​Fang System of the Bailey of Tang Dynasty’s Chang’an (唐代长安外郭城街道及里坊的变迁),” Journal of Chinese Historical Geography (中国历史地理论丛), 1 (1994). 15 Song Xu (徐松), Research on the Two Capitals of the Tang (唐两京城坊考) (Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company 中华书局, 1985), 34. 16 The territory of the Tang empire was divided into ten daos (道), each being a supervisory area. 17 Ren Yi (逸人), “A Study of the Design Thought Behind Chang’an of Han and Tang Dynasties (汉唐长安城建筑设计思想初探)” A Collection of Papers at Shanxi Museological and Archaeological Achievements Update Meeting (陕西省文博考古科研成果汇报会论文选集), 1981; it is noteworthy that the Tang empire administered 13 regions (州). 18 Minjie Shang (尚民杰), loc cit. 19 Hongnian Yang (杨鸿年), The Introduction of the Blocks in the Two Capital Cities during the Sui and Tang Dynasties 隋唐两京坊里谱 (Shanghai: Shanghai Chinese Classics Publishing House 上海古籍出版社, 1999). 20 Jian Wang (王健), Changhe Pan (潘畅和), Xuehai Lu (鲁学海), A Complete History of Korea (朝鲜全史) (Yanbian: Yanbian University Press 延边大学出版 社, 1988) vol 3, pp. 23–27, pp. 155–157, pp. 216–217; Xuefeng Fang (方学风),

252  Epilogue: Influence of Ye City’s layout “The Influence of Ancient Chinese Capital System on Korea and Japan (中国古代都城制对朝鲜、日本古代都城制的影响),” Journal of Yanbian University (Social Science) (延边大学社会科学学报), 7 (1997). 21 Toshio Kishi, loc cit. 22 Ahn-​ hee Shin (申安熙), “Golyeosidae Gyeong-​ gi Uiwisang Gwayeoghalhe (고려시대”京畿”의위상과역할).” Inmunhag Yeongu Silijeu (人文科学研究论丛), 25 (Jul 2003). 23 Kyung-​Cho Chung and Kyong-​jo Chong, Korea: The Third Republic (New York: Macmillan, 1971), 11. 24 Hideo Akiyama (秋山日出雄, “Nihon Kodai Tojyousei no Gennryu (日本古代都 城制の源流),” Rekishi Kenkyu (历史研究), 19 (Jun 1981). 25 Hideo Akiyama, “Hati Syou Inn Tyou Dou Inn no Sokata (八省院二朝堂院の祖型),” Nanba Kyuusi No Kennkyuu (难波宫址の研究), 7 (Mar 1981). 26 Toshio Kishi, loc cit. 27 Toshio Kishi, loc cit. 28 Toshio Kishi, loc cit. 29 Sanae Ueda (上田早苗), op cit, 19. 30 Zhongshu Wang (王仲殊), “On the Origin of Japan’s Ancient Capital Layout (关于日本古代都城制度的源流),” Archaeology (考古), 4 (1983). 31 Weikun Wang (王维坤), “A Comparative Study of Sui—​Tang Chang’an and Japan’s Heijo-​kyo (隋唐长安城与日本平城京的比较研究),” Journal of Northwest University (西北大学学报) 20, 1 (1990). 32 Jean Elizabeth and Laureate Ward, Book of Odes (self-​pub, 2008), 169. 33 Ibid, 169–​170. 34 Kuan Yang (杨宽), Preface to Studies on the History of Ancient Chinese Capital Institution (中国古代都城制度史研究序言) (Shanghai: Shanghai Chinese Classics Publishing House 上海古籍出版社, 1993). 35 Sanae Ueda (上田早苗), loc cit.

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Index

“Accompany Military Campaigns” 62 Altar of the Soil and Grain 88–​91 Analytical Dictionary of Chinese Characters, An 5 Ancestral Temple 88–​91 Ancestral Temple of the Murong Clan 218 Ancient Places of the Spring and Autumn Period 7 Ancient Texts from Ji Tomb 5, 6 Annals’ Inclusion of the Primary Mandate 80 “Annals of Emperor Wudi” 106 Annals of Sixteen States 179 Annotated Records of Emperor Xiandi 73 Annotations to Wei Capital Rhapsody 67 Annals of Lü Buwei 111–​112 Anyang Palace 209 Archaic Phonetics 6 Assemblages of the Arts and Letters 86 “At His Lordship’s Banquet” 87, 92–​93 Bai Gate 180 “Banquet Poem” 88 Battle of Ye 55 Bell tower 80–​81 Bian, Madame 131–​132, 144 “Biographies of Jesters” 112–​113 “Biography of Gaotang Long” 100 Book of Han, The 6, 111–​112 Book of Jin, The 78, 136, 164, 165; on the Former Yan 217; Later Zhao and 179, 180, 186–​188, 190, 202–​204, 206 Book of Northern Qi, The 204, 233, 241 Book of Poetry, The 246 Book of Rites 59, 217 Book of Sui, The 167 Book of the Later Han 150 Book of Wei, The 58, 76

Book of Zhou, The 237–​238 Bronze Bird Garden 91–​97 Bronze Bird Terrace 64–​69, 181–​182, 218 Buddhism 167 buildings and capital system of Ye city of Cao-​Wei 59–​117; Altar of the Soil and Grain 88–​91; Ancestral Temple 88–​91; city walls and gates 46–​48, 55, 59–​64; Crown Prince palace 86–​88; government offices outside the Palace City 97–​100, 201–​202; outside buildings 106–​111; palace halls 76–​84; palaces 69–​97; quarter lanes 103–​104; three terraces 64–​69, 181–​184; twin gatetowers and streets 100–​103; water conservancy works 111–​117; Ye market 104–​106 burning down of Ye city 167–​170 Cao Cao 30, 49, 70, 228; construction of the Ye state capital and 56–​58; Gao Mausoleum ( see Gao Mausoleum); military ambition of 55–​56; transition of Ye city to national capital and 52–​56 Cao Pi: On Classic 86; “Hunting Rhapsody” 82; “Lament for the Father King” 126; “Lotus Pond Poem” 93; “Poem of Bronze Bird Garden” 96; “Rhapsody on Lament for My Late Brother” 83; “Rhapsody of Ascending the City” 60–​62; “Rhapsody on Ascending the Terrace” 66–​67; “Summer Poem” and “Poem of East Pavilion” 87; “Written by Xuanwu Pond” 106–​107 Cao-​Wei see buildings and capital system of Ye city of Cao-​Wei

Index  261 Cao Zhi: “Annals of Emperor Wudi of Wei” 89; “Eulogy of the Father King” 127; “Guest-​Pleasing Rhapsody” 94; “Hunting Rhapsody” 82–​83, 92; “Lantern Festival Poem” 78; “Ode to the Academy” 109; “Ode to the Confucian Temple” 110; “Pagoda Tree Rhapsody” 79; “Parting Sorrow Rhapsody” 95; “Poem of Bronze Bird Garden” 96; “Poem to a Parting Friend” 85; “Vernal Excursion Rhapsody” 70, 95 Celestial Terrace 218 Changhe Gate 72 Chen Lin 88 Chen Sheng 39 Chen Yinke 231–​232, 233 Chen Yu 39 Chongli Gate 74 Chu-​Han War 41 cities: formation of layout of medieval period East Asian 245–​250, 248–​250; general overview of 1–​5; influence of ancient Chinese, on East Asia 2–​4; preindustrial versus industrial 1; western versus eastern 1–​2 Classified Assemblages of the Arts and Letters 100, 181–​182 Cockfighting Terrace 207 Collected Annotations to Records of the Grand Historian 5 Collected Records of the Spring and Autumn Period 80 Collection of Music Bureau Poems 207 Commentary on Records of the Grand Historian 6 Commentary on the Waterway Classic, The 65, 67–​68, 107–​108, 110, 113, 136; Later Zhao and 176–​181, 184, 186–​187 Comprehensive Gazetteer, The 36 Comprehensive Gazetteer of the Great Ming 11 Comprehensive Gazetteer of the Great Ming and Records of Famous Places and Spots 13 Comprehensive Gazetteer of the Great Qing 11 concubines 89–​90, 143 construction of the Ye city state capital 56–​58 Continued Biographies of Eminent Monks 204

Corrected Meanings of Records of the Grand Historian 36 Crown Prince palace 86–​88; Later Zhao 201 Cui Xi 5 Dengxian Gate 74 Deng Yu 42 Dictionary of Words and Phrases 12 Discussions On Wei Terrace 86 Dong Zhuo 43–​44 Dragon-​Carving and the Literary Mind 96 drum tower 80–​81 Duke Huan of Qi 5, 36 East Asian capital cities, medieval period formation and layout of 245–​250, 248–​250 Eastern Han epoch, Ye city during 42–​43, 45–​46 East Hall 218 East Shangdong Gate 72–​73 East Side Gate 75–​76 Epitaph of Lu Qian 130, 135 Epitaph of Lu Qian of Later Zhao 130 Essentials of Geography for Reading History 11 “Eulogy of the Father King” 127 “Expedition Rhapsody” 110 Explanations of Names 151 Extended Record of Remarkable Things 85 Fan Qin 80 Fengyang Gate 178–​179 Feng Youlan’s Autobiography 2–​4 Former Qin 220–​225 Former Yan 216–​220 “Four Poems” 94 “Four Poems: 2” 94 Gan Bao 167 Gao Huan 228 Gao Mausoleum: ancient records on 126–​129; archaeological evidence of 129–​131; authenticity of 126–​133; bronze seal and yellow silk robe with brocade collar and sleeves in 148–​151; location, direction and type of mausoleum 133–​148; origin of 133–​139; other evidence of 131–​133; plan of the Grand West Tomb and

262 Index design of the Ye palace of Wei 151–​153; site selection, construction, and direction of 139–​143; type and features of 143–​148; unearthed antiquities and relevant research on 148–​153 Garden of Mulberry and Catalpa 206 gates, Ye city 46–​48, 55, 59–​64; in Later Zhao 175–​180; palace 71–​76 gatetowers, twin 100–​103 Gazetteer of the City, The 11 Gazetteer of the Sixteen States 217, 219 Gazetteer of the World During the Taiping Period 138, 177, 178 Gazetteer of Xiangtai Prefecture 58, 139 Gazetteer of Zhangde Prefecture 5, 12, 13, 58, 73, 108, 134–​135, 137, 231, 241; Later Zhao and 177–​178, 184, 186–​187, 190 General Interpretation of History 220 Golden Gate 75 Golden Phoenix Terrace 64–​65, 68–​69, 182–​183 Gong Liu 246 government offices outside the Palace City 97–​100; Later Zhao 201–​202 Great Dictionary of Chinese Ancient and Modern Place Names 12 Guangde Gate 180 Gyeongju, the Capital of Silla 239 Hall of Achieved Bliss 217 Hall of Positive Yang 217 halls, palace: inner court 76–​77, 81–​84; outer court 76–​81 harem, palace 76–​77, 84–​86; Later Zhao 190–​201 Heavenly Well Weir 207 Henan region 9 He Jiuying 6 History as a Mirror 46, 59, 176 History of Northern Dynasties 233 History of Song 13, 134 “Hollyhock Rhapsody” 95 Hongguang Gate 179 Horse-​Reviewing Terrace 208 hostels, Ye city 48 Hualin Garden 205–​206 Huangfu Jian 5 Huang Huixian 205 Huan River 176–​177 “Hunting Rhapsody” 82, 84, 92

Ice Well Terrace 69, 159–​160, 181–​184 Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era 201, 204–​205 Imperial School of Ye Palace 203 inner city, Ye city 48–​49 inner court, palace 76–​77, 81–​84 “Inscription on Ruibin Bell” 80–​81 Interpretations of the Book of History 90 Japan 242–​245 Jianchun Gate 179–​180 Jianwen, Emperor 67 Jiao Zhiqin 6 Jinming Gate 180 Jiu Gate 180 Ji Yun 185 Korea, ancient capitals of 238–​242 “Lament for Emperor Wudi of Wei, A” 128, 159 “Lament for the Father King” 126 “Lantern Festival Poem” 78 Later Yan 220–​225 Later Zhao 229; city layout and structures of 175–​213; city walls and gates in 175–​180; founding of and relocation of its capital to Ye 172–​174; government offices 201–​202; harem 190–​201; other buildings 203–​204; outer buildings 204–​209; palace buildings and furnishings 184–​201; palace for Crown Prince 201; reconstruction of Ye city in 174–​175; revolts in 209–​213; streets and lanes 202–​203; three terraces in 181–​184 Li Liang 39 Liu Bang 41 Liu Xiu 42 Liu Zhen 92, 103–​104 Li You 72–​73 Li Zhen 103 “Lotus Pond Poem” 93 Lu Chen 165 Lu Guimeng 85 Lu Ji 159 Lu Yun 160–​163 Mao’s Commentaries of the Book of Poetry 60–​61 Maps and Gazetteer of the Provinces and Counties in the Yuanhe Period 134, 135–​136

Index  263 mausoleum, Palace City see Gao Mausoleum “Midie Rhapsody” 83 Murong clan see Former Yan Murong Jun’s tomb 219 national capital, Ye city as 52–​56, 156–​158 New Account of the Tales of the World, A 99 New Palace Rhapsody 241 Northern Wei, revolts in 209–​213 North Gate of Ye 218 North Korea 238–​242 “Ode to the Confucian Temple” 110 “Ode to the Academy” 109–​110 Old Book of Tang 12, 90–​91, 134 On Classic 86 “Orange Rhapsody” 94–​95 origination and early development of Ye city 5–​11, 36–​44 outer court, palace 76–​77; halls of 77–​81 Outline of Records 88 outside buildings 106–​111 “Pagoda Tree Poem” 80 “Pagoda Tree Rhapsody” 71, 79 palace buildings, Ye city 69–​97; Bronze Bird Garden 91–​97; for the Crown Prince 86–​88, 201; gates of 71–​76; government offices outside 97–​100; harem 76–​77, 84–​86, 190–​201; Inner Court 76–​77, 81–​84; in Later Zhao 184–​201; outer court 76–​81 Palace of Bright Light 208 Palace of Eternal Joy 206 Palace of Pear Garden 206 Palace of Red Bridge 207 Pan Geng 5–​6 Pei Songzhi 45, 47–​48, 73 Pei Yin 5 “Poem” 93–​94 “Poem of Bronze Bird Garden” 96 “Poem of Bronze Bird Terrace” 93 “Poem of East Pavilion” 87 “Poem of Ye Palace” 85 “Poem to a Parting Friend” 85 Poetic Notes from a Forest-​Watching Hermit 85 Provenance of Character, The 5 Pu Pond 218 Purple Path, Purple Path Bridge 207, 218

Qin dynasty, Ye city during 38–​40, 45 quarter lanes 103–​104 rebellion of the eight kings 167–​170 reconstruction and expansion of Ye city 45–​49, 52 Record of Chang’an 234 Record of Heroes 45 Record of Past and Present Landscapes in Yongchu Era of the Song 74 Record of Trades 89 Record of Visits to Antiquities of Heshuo, A 134, 139, 228 Record of Ye 65, 178, 184, 185–​186, 188, 205, 227, 228 Records of Famous Places and Spots 13 Records of Famous Places and Spots 11 Records of Former Yan 217, 220 Records of Later Zhao 201 Records of the Grand Historian 36–​37, 112 Records of the Three Kingdoms 11, 36, 45, 47–​48, 52, 73, 76, 88–​89, 100, 106, 145 regional center, Ye city as 52–​56, 156–​158 “Response to Emperor Wudi’s Royal Field Poem” 67 Restoration Drawing of the Planar Layout of Ye City of Cao-​Wei 60 revolts in Later Zhao and Northern Wei 209–​213 “Rhapsody of Ascending the City” 60 “Rhapsody of Ascent to the Terraces” 68, 160–​163, 165 “Rhapsody of Missing a Friend” 61 “Rhapsody on Ascending the Terrace” 66–​67 “Rhapsody on Lament for My Late Brother” 83 “Rhapsody on the Ice Well” 159–​160 Rite of Zhou 132, 229, 237, 245–​249 Ruibin Bell 80–​81 Sanae, Ueda 244 Search for Spirits, The 166–​167 Selections of Refined Literature 65 Shi Hu 205–​208 Shi Le 172–​174 Shrine for Ximen Bao 209 Shunde Gate 74 Sima Gate 74–​75, 178 Sima Qian 31

264 Index “Sitting in Attendance with the Crown Prince” 97 Sjoberg, G. 1 Sketch of Wei 145 Skinner 1–​2 Song dynasty, Ye city during 42 Southern Suburbs 208 South Korea 238–​242 Stories of the Ye Capital 208 Strategies of the Warring States 6 streets and lanes 100–​103; Later Zhao 202–​203 Studies on Historical Records of The Book of Sui and Addenda 11 Study of the History of Capital Layout in Ancient China, A 246 “Summer Poem” 87 Tales of Emperor Wudi of Han 67 Tales of the Customs 100 Tang Institutions of Six Administrative Divisions 233 terraces of Ye city 64–​69, 159–​160, 181–​184 Tian Du 39 Tianle Temple 204 Tingzheng Gate 74 “To Ding Yi” 96 Tombs of Cities 5 Toshio, Kishi 243 Tower of Demonstrating Militancy 208 Tower of East Light 218 “To Xu Gan” 99–​100, 103 “Treatise on the Virtue of Wei” 82–​83 “Trip from the Western Ye, A” 159 twin gatetowers 100–​103 “Vernal Excursion Rhapsody” 70–​71, 95–​96 walls, Ye city 46–​48, 55, 59–​64; in Later Zhao 175–​180 Wang Anshi 128–​129 Wang Can 61–​62, 67–​68, 80, 82, 87, 93–​94 Wang Li 39–​40 Wanyang Parade Ground 208 Warring States period, Ye city during 40–​41 wars in Ye city 209–​213 Watch Terrace 207 water conservancy works, Ye city 111–​117

“Wei Capital Rhapsody” 64, 67, 73, 77, 81, 83–​84, 88, 91, 97–​98, 102–​105 “Western Capital Rhapsody” 72 Western Han epoch, Ye city during 41–​42 Western Jin epoch, Ye city in 158–​167 West Shangdong Gate 73 White Horse Stupa 204 White Horse Temple 204 Writings for Elementary Instruction 59, 65, 89–​90 “Written by Xuanwu Pond” 106–​107 Wu Chen 39 Wu Guang 39 Wu Xuezong 72 Wuyi Bell 80–​81 Xiang Yu 5, 41 Xianxianli Primary School 218 Xianyang Gate 74 Xianyuan Mausoleum 218 Xiaowen, Emperor 232 Ximen Bao 111 Xingchong 90–​91 Xuanming Gate 74 Xu Shen 5 Yanbei Mere 207 Yanqiu Gate 73 Ye city 4–​5; accessibility of 8–​9; annexation of Shandong region and 37; border areas 10–​11; buildings and capital system of 59–​117; as capital of Former Yan 216–​220; changes and characteristics of layout of 226–​231; during the Chu-​Han War 41; construction of capital 56–​58; decline in Former Qin and Later Yan 220–​225; during the Eastern Han epoch 42–​43, 45–​46; ethnic fusion and 10–​11; founding of Later Zhao and relocation of its capital to 172–​174; four stages of research on 14–​29; Gao Mausoleum ( see Gao Mausoleum); gates and walls of 46–​48, 55, 175–​180; geographic location of 7–​11; hostels of 48; implications of research on 29–​32; inner city 48–​49; layout and structure in Later Zhao 175–​213; layout of ancient Japanese capitals and 242–​245; layout of North Korea and South Korea’s ancient capitals and 238–​242; long history

Index  265 of 226; market 104–​106; origination and early development of 5–​11, 36–​44; outside buildings 106–​111; palace buildings 69–​97, 184–​201; during the Qin dynasty 38–​40, 45; rebellion of the eight knights and burning down of 167–​170; reconstruction and expansion of 45–​49, 52; reconstruction under Later Zhao 174–​175; relic site oblivion and erroneous locations of 11–​14; revolts in Later Zhao and Northern Wei and wars in 209–​213; during the Song dynasty 42; streets and lanes 100–​103, 202–​203; three terraces 64–​69, 159–​160, 181–​184; townships of 166–​167; as traffic pivot in Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods 9–​10; transition from national capital to regional center 156–​158; transition from regional center to national capital 52–​56; during the Warring States period 40–​41; water

conservancy works 111–​117; during the Western Han epoch 41–​42; during the Western Jin period 158–​167; during the Zhongping period 43–​44 Ye-​Daxing-​Chang’an capital lineage 231–​238 Ying Chang 87–​88 Yuan Shao 45–​49; transition of Ye city to national capital and 52–​56 Yu Shu 159–​160 Yu Yingfu 129 Zang Tu 39 Zhang Er 39 Zhang Gate 46–​47 Zhang Han 40 Zhang Heng 72 Zhiche Gate 72 Zhongping period, Ye city during 43–​44 Zhong Temple 204 Zhou Chaozhong 129 Zhu Kezhen 41 Zuo Si 77, 102, 104–​106, 164