Shi Yi ( 190s – 240s),

courtesy name A courtesy name (), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one's given name. This practice is a tradition in the East Asian cultural sphere, including China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.Ulrich Theobald ...

Ziyu. After local service that saw him bullied into name change, he fled south during the civil war and became a trusted officer to

Sun Quan Sun Quan (, Chinese: 孫權) (183 – 21 May 252), courtesy name Zhongmou (), posthumously known as Emperor Da of Wu, was the founder of the Eastern Wu dynasty, one of the Three Kingdoms of China. He inherited control of the warlord regime es ...

the future Emperor of

Eastern Wu Wu ( Chinese: 吳; pinyin: ''Wú''; Middle Chinese *''ŋuo'' <

Eastern Han Chinese

: ''*ŋuɑ''), known in h ...

during the

Three Kingdoms The Three Kingdoms () from 220 to 280 AD was the tripartite division of China among the dynastic states of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu. The Three Kingdoms period was preceded by the Han dynasty#Eastern Han, Eastern Han dynasty and wa ...

period of China. A frugal man, he would become a tutor to Princes, diplomat, he rejected military rank and rewards he felt he was undeserving of.

Life under the Eastern Han dynasty

Shi Yi was from Yingling County (),

Beihai State Beihai Commandery ( zh, 北海郡) was a historical commandery of China, located in present-day northern Shandong province. Beihai was created during Emperor Jing of Han's reign. According to Zhou Zhenhe, Beihai was likely established on six count ...

(),

Qing Province Qingzhou or Qing Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China dating back to BCE that later became one of the thirteen provinces of the Han dynasty (206 BCE–220 CE). The Nine Provinces were first described in the '' Tribut ...

, which is located southeast of present-day

Changle County Changle County () is under the administration of Weifang Weifang () is a prefecture-level city in central Shandong province, People's Republic of China. The city borders Dongying to the northwest, Zibo to the west, Linyi to the southwest, Riz ...

Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilizati ...

. He started his career as an assistant official in the county office before progressing in the early 190's to serve on the staff of

Kong Rong Kong Rong () (153 – 26 September 208), courtesy name Wenju, was a Chinese poet, politician, and minor warlord. who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was a 20th generation descendant of Confucius. As he was once the Chance ...

, the Chancellor of Beihai State. Shi Yi's original family name was ''Shi'' () and when Kong Rong heard about it, he made fun of Shi Yi's family name, saying that the character ''shi'' () had one stroke less than the character ''min'' (), indicating the common people, so suggested that Shi Yi change his family name to the similar sounding ''Shi'' () instead. Shi Yi heeded Kong Rong's suggestion. The

Eastern Jin dynasty Eastern may refer to: Transportation *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai * Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways * Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991 *Eastern Air ...

historian Xu Zhong (), among others, criticised both of them for Shi Yi's changing of his family name and said that it was disrespectful to Shi's ancestors. Around the mid-190s, when chaos broke out in Qing Province and perhaps after 193 when Kong Rong was driven away by

Yuan Tan Yuan Tan (died 205), courtesy name Xiansi, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who was the eldest son of Yuan Shao, a warlord who occupied much of northern China during the late Eastern Han dynasty. After Yuan Shao's death, Y ...

, Shi Yi travelled south to the Jiangdong region, where he took shelter under Liu Yao, the Governor of

Yang Province Yangzhou, Yangchow or Yang Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China mentioned in historical texts such as the ''Tribute of Yu'', '' Erya'' and '' Rites of Zhou''. Name There are four different theories regarding the origin of t ...

. After Liu Yao was defeated by the warlord

Sun Ce Sun Ce () () (175–200), courtesy name Bofu, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was the eldest child of Sun Jian, who was killed during the Battle of Xiangyang w ...

in 195, Shi Yi left him and settled down in

Kuaiji Commandery Kuaiji Commandery (Chinese: t , s , p ''Kuàijī Jùn''), formerly romanized as K'uai-chi Commandery, was a former commandery of China in the area of Hangzhou Bay. When first established, its capital was at Wu (present-day ...

(around present-day

Shaoxing Shaoxing (; ) is a prefecture-level city on the southern shore of Hangzhou Bay in northeastern Zhejiang province, China. It was formerly known as Kuaiji and Shanyin and abbreviated in Chinese as (''Yuè'') from the area's former inhabitants. ...

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Jiang ...

). In the year 200, after Sun Ce's death, his younger brother

succeeded him and became the new warlord ruling over the Jiangdong territories. Around this time, Sun Quan sent Shi Yi an elegantly written letter, asking Shi Yi to join him. Shi Yi agreed and joined Sun Quan's staff, increasingly gaining trust with classified documents and around 211 became a Cavalry Commandant (). In 219, when Sun Quan's general

Lü Meng Lü Meng () (178 – January or February 220), courtesy name Ziming, was a Chinese military general and politician who served under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Early in his career, he fought in several batt ...

proposed a plan to defeat

Liu Bei Liu Bei (, ; ; 161 – 10 June 223), courtesy name Xuande (), was a warlord in the late Eastern Han dynasty who founded the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms period and became its first ruler. Although he was a distant relative of the H ...

's officer

Guan Yu Guan Yu (; ), courtesy name Yunchang, was a Chinese military general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Along with Zhang Fei, he shared a brotherly relationship with Liu Bei and accompanied him on ...

and seize control of southern

Jing Province Jingzhou or Jing Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China referenced in Chinese historical texts such as the ''Tribute of Yu'', '' Erya'' and '' Rites of Zhou''. Jingzhou became an administrative division during the reign of Empe ...

, Sun Quan sought Shi Yi's opinion. Shi Yi agreed with Lü Meng's plan so Shi Yi was made Colonel of Loyalty and Righteousness () and ordered to accompany Lü Meng on the campaign. When Shi Yi protested at appointment due to lack of expirence, Sun Quan said, "I may not be a

Viscount Jian of Zhao A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicial ...

, but does that mean you can't be a Zhou She?"

Life in Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period

After the successful

conquest Conquest is the act of military subjugation of an enemy by force of arms. Military history provides many examples of conquest: the Roman conquest of Britain, the Mauryan conquest of Afghanistan and of vast areas of the Indian subcontinent, t ...

of southern

relocated the capital of his territories to Wuchang (武昌; present-day

Ezhou Ezhou () is a prefecture-level city in eastern Hubei Province, China. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 1,079,353, of which 695,697 lived in the core Echeng District. The Ezhou - Huanggang built-up (''or metro'') area was home ...

Hubei Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The prov ...

), which was in southern Jing Province. In the same year, Sun Quan pledged nominal allegiance to

Cao Pi Cao Pi () ( – 29 June 226), courtesy name Zihuan, was the first emperor of the state of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the second son of Cao Cao, a warlord who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty, but the eldest son ...

, the emperor of the

Cao Wei Wei ( Hanzi: 魏; pinyin: ''Wèi'' <

Middle Chinese

: *''ŋjwei^C'' <

state, which had replaced the

Eastern Han dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...

. In return, Cao Pi made Sun Quan a

vassal A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerain. W ...

king under the title "King of (Eastern) Wu" ().''Zizhi Tongjian'' vol. 69. Sun Quan then promoted Shi Yi to Major-General (), appointed him as a Palace Attendant (). When Sun Quan became King, he enoffed his three confidential clerks

Hu Zong Hu Zong (183–243), courtesy name Weize, was a government official, writer, poet and military general of the state of Eastern Wu in the Three Kingdoms period of China. Early life Hu Zong was from Gushi County, Runan Commandery (), which is in ...

Xiang Xu Xiang or Hsiang may refer to: *Xiang (place), the site of Hong Xiuquan's destruction of a Chinese idol early in the Taiping Rebellion *Xiang (surname), three unrelated surnames: Chinese: 項 and Chinese: 向 (both ''Xiàng'') and Chinese: 相 (''X ...

and Shi Yi with the latter made a Marquis of a Chief Village (). Later, when Sun Quan wanted to put Shi Yi in command of more troops, Shi Yi firmly declined as he knew that he was not suitable to be a military commander. In 222, Sun Quan broke ties with Cao Pi and declared independence in his Eastern Wu kingdom. In 228, he sent Shi Yi to Wan County (皖縣; present-day

Qianshan County Qianshan is a county-level city in the southwest of Anhui Province, People's Republic of China; it is under the jurisdiction of the prefecture-level city of Anqing. It has a population of 570,000 and an area of . The government of Qianshan County ...

Anhui Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze River ...

) to join the general Liu Shao () at Lujiang, luring the Wei general

Cao Xiu Cao Xiu (died 29 September 228?), courtesy name Wenlie, was a Chinese military general of the state of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period of China. A distant younger relative of the warlord Cao Cao, Cao Xiu started his career in the late Easte ...

and his troops into a trap and defeated them. After the battle, Sun Quan promoted Shi Yi to Lieutenant-General () and recalled him to Wuchang to serve in the imperial secretariat, one of the key organs of the central government, managing court cases and supervising the officials. Later, he put Shi Yi in charge of his sons' education. In 229, Sun Quan declared himself emperor of the

Eastern Wu Wu ( Chinese: 吳; pinyin: ''Wú''; Middle Chinese *''ŋuo'' <

Eastern Han Chinese

: ''*ŋuɑ''), known in h ...

state. In October that year, he moved the imperial capital from Wuchang (武昌; present-day

) to Jianye (present-day

Nanjing Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and the second largest city in the East China region. T ...

Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, Postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an Eastern China, eastern coastal Provinces of the People's Republic of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China. It is o ...

) and left the

crown prince A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title is crown princess, which may refer either to an heiress apparent or, especially in earlier times, to the wif ...

Sun Deng in charge of Wuchang. Shi Yi remained in Wuchang as an adviser to Sun Deng, who highly respected him and frequently consulted him on policy matters. He was also elevated from the status of a village marquis to a Marquis of a Chief District (). Later, he accompanied Sun Deng when Sun Quan summoned them to Jianye, where Shi Yi was appointed as a Palace Attendant () and Central Upholder of the Law (). Shi Yi served in the imperial secretariat and performed duties similar to those when he was in Wuchang before 229. Sometime in the 230s, Lü Yi, the supervisor of the audit bureau, falsely accused Diao Jia (), the Administrator of

Jiangxia Commandery Jiangxia Commandery ( zh, 江夏郡) was a Chinese commandery that existed from Han dynasty to Tang dynasty. Its territories were located in present-day eastern Hubei province. History Jiangxia Commandery was established during the reign of Empero ...

(江夏郡; around present-day

Wuhan Wuhan (, ; ; ) is the capital of Hubei, Hubei Province in the China, People's Republic of China. It is the largest city in Hubei and the most populous city in Central China, with a population of over eleven million, the List of cities in China ...

), of defaming the imperial court. Sun Quan was so furious when he heard about it that he had Diao Jia arrested and imprisoned. During the interrogation, when Diao Jia's colleagues were asked whether they heard him defame the imperial court, they all said they did, because they feared retaliation from Lü Yi if they said no. Shi Yi, however, insisted that he did not hear Diao Jia say anything defamatory. As the investigation dragged on for days, the tone of the imperial edicts issued by Sun Quan on this issue became increasingly harsh and stern, to the point where Shi Yi's colleagues feared for his life. Shi Yi remained unfazed and told Sun Quan, "The sword's blade is now on my neck. Why would I dare to conceal the truth, seek my own death, and end up becoming a disloyal ghost? I only hope that everyone will see the truth." When he was questioned, he answered truthfully and gave consistent responses. Sun Quan eventually believed Shi Yi and spared Diao Jia. The

historian Xu Zhong () praised Shi Yi for maintaining his integrity, standing by his moral principles, and showing moral courage in such a life-threatening situation. In 234,

Zhuge Liang Zhuge Liang ( zh, t=諸葛亮 / 诸葛亮) (181 – September 234), courtesy name Kongming, was a Chinese statesman and military strategist. He was chancellor and later regent of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period. He is r ...

, the Imperial Chancellor of Eastern Wu's ally state

Shu Han Han (; 221–263), known in historiography as Shu Han ( ) or Ji Han ( "Junior Han"), or often shortened to Shu (; pinyin: ''shŭ'' <

Battle of Wuzhang Plains The Battle of Wuzhang Plains was fought between the contending states of Cao Wei and Shu Han in 234 AD during the Three Kingdoms period of China. The battle was the fifth and last of a series of Northern Expeditions led by Shu's chancellor, ...

against their rival state

Cao Wei Wei ( Hanzi: 魏; pinyin: ''Wèi'' <

Middle Chinese

: *''ŋjwei^C'' <

. In the same year, Sun Quan sent Shi Yi as an emissary to Shu to extend his condolences and reaffirm the Wu–Shu alliance against Wei. Shi Yi performed well on his diplomatic mission. After he returned to Wu, Sun Quan appointed him as Supervisor of the Masters of Writing (). In 242, Sun Quan designated his third and eldest surviving son,

Sun He Sun He (224 – November or December 253), courtesy name Zixiao, was an imperial prince of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the third son of Sun Quan, the founding emperor of Wu. In 242, he became the cro ...

, as the new

to replace Sun Deng, who died in the previous year. In the same year, he also enfeoffed his fourth son,

Sun Ba Sun Ba (before 235 - September or October 250), courtesy name Ziwei, was an imperial prince of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the fourth son of Sun Quan, the founding emperor of Eastern Wu. Life Sun Ba ...

, as the Prince of Lu. At the time, Shi Yi served as a tutor () to Sun Ba. When he saw that Sun Ba received equal treatment as Sun He, he felt that it was highly inappropriate because according to Confucian rules of propriety, Sun He, as the Crown Prince, should be accorded greater honours and privileges as compared to Sun Ba. He wrote three or four

memorial A memorial is an object or place which serves as a focus for the memory or the commemoration of something, usually an influential, deceased person or a historical, tragic event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects or works of a ...

s to Sun Quan, recommending the emperor to let Sun Ba assume greater responsibilities and groom him to become an important pillar of the state. As Sun Ba's tutor, he gave proper advice to the prince and performed his role in a professional manner. At the same time, he also carried out his other duties diligently and treated everyone respectfully. As Shi Yi became critically ill towards the end of his life, he said that he wanted to have a very simple funeral, to be buried in a coffin of simple design, and to be dressed in the clothes he normally wore. He died in an unknown year at the age of 81 (by

East Asian age reckoning Countries in the East Asian cultural sphere (China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam, and their diasporas) have traditionally used specific methods of reckoning a person's numerical age based not on their birthday but the calendar year, and what age one is ...

Appraisal

Shi Yi was known for leading a frugal and humble lifestyle. Unlike many other officials, he did not accumulate wealth for his family and never accepted financial aid from others. He was content with having only basic necessities.

once went on a tour of Shi Yi's neighbourhood and saw a large mansion. When he asked who the owner of the mansion was, someone told him it was Shi Yi. However, Sun Quan said that it was definitely not Shi Yi, given his lifestyle. He was proven right. Shi Yi wore very simple clothing and had simple meals every day. He also enjoyed helping the needy so he often donated or gave away his personal savings to the poor. When Sun Quan heard about it, he visited Shi Yi's house and sampled the meals Shi Yi had every day. After the visit, he increased Shi Yi's salary, gave him more rewards and a larger plot of land. However, Shi Yi rejected these rewards and gifts and said that he would feel uneasy if he accepted them. Throughout his service in the Wu government, Shi Yi had never made any mistake before. When Lü Yi, the supervisor of the audit bureau, was looking for flaws in officials' work so that he could maliciously make a case and accuse them of something, he could find at least four problems with the work of every official he accused. However, when it came to Shi Yi's work, he could not find a single flaw. Sun Quan also once sighed, "If everyone were like Shi Yi, would there still be a need for laws, rules and regulations?" Whenever Shi Yi recommended talents to Sun Quan, he only pointed out their strengths and said nothing about their weaknesses. Sun Quan thus chided him for not saying anything about their weaknesses and not making judgments about them. In response, Shi Yi said, "Your Majesty, as your subject, my duty is to perform my role well. I am always worried about not being competent in my role. (I keep my opinions about their weaknesses to myself because) I don't want to let my ignorance and limited knowledge affect Your Majesty's judgment about them."

Chen Shou Chen Shou (; 233–297), courtesy name Chengzuo (), was a Chinese historian, politician, and writer who lived during the Three Kingdoms period and Jin dynasty of China. Chen Shou is most known for his most celebrated work, the ''Records of the ...

, the historian who wrote Shi Yi's biography, among others, in the ''

Records of the Three Kingdoms The ''Records or History of the Three Kingdoms'', also known by its Chinese name as the Sanguo Zhi, is a Chinese historical text which covers the history of the late Eastern Han dynasty (c. 184–220 AD) and the Three Kingdoms period (220– ...

'', appraised Shi Yi as follows: "Shi Yi was one of the highly capable and competent officials serving under Sun Quan. He was also known for his virtuous and upright moral character."(評曰：是儀、徐詳、胡綜，皆孫權之時幹興事業者也。儀清恪貞素， ...) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 62.

Notes

References

* Chen, Shou (3rd century). ''

'' (''Sanguozhi''). * * Pei, Songzhi (5th century). ''

Annotations to Records of the Three Kingdoms Annotations to Records of the Three Kingdoms () by Pei Songzhi (372-451) is an annotation completed in the 5th century of the 3rd century historical text ''Records of the Three Kingdoms'', compiled by Chen Shou. After leaving his native land, Pei ...

'' (''Sanguozhi zhu''). * Sima, Guang (1084). ''

Zizhi Tongjian ''Zizhi Tongjian'' () is a pioneering reference work in Chinese historiography, published in 1084 AD during the Northern Song dynasty in the form of a chronicle recording Chinese history from 403 BC to 959 AD, covering 16 dynast ...

''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Shi, Yi Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown Eastern Wu politicians Officials under Sun Quan Han dynasty politicians from Shandong Politicians from Weifang

Life under the Eastern Han dynasty

Life in Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period

Appraisal

See also

Notes

References