Xue Yiju (; died May 25, 912''

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 ...

'', vol. 268.Academia Sinica Chinese-Western Calendar Converter
),

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 ...

Xiyong (熙用) or Shizhan (式瞻), was an official of the

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...

Tang Dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...

and the subsequent Later Liang, serving as a

chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

during Later Liang.

Background

It is not known when Xue Yiju was born. His family claimed ancestry from Wenxi (聞喜, in modern

Yuncheng Yuncheng is the southernmost prefecture-level city in Shanxi province, People's Republic of China. It borders Linfen and Jincheng municipalities to the north and east, and Henan (Luoyang and Jiyuan to the east, Sanmenxia to the south) and Shaan ...

Shanxi Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-lev ...

)'' History of the Five Dynasties'', vol. 18. and original descent from the mythical emperor

Zhuanxu Zhuanxu (Chinese: trad. , simp. , pinyin ''Zhuānxū''), also known as Gaoyang ( t , s , p ''Gāoyáng''), was a mythological emperor of ancient China. In the traditional account recorded by Sima Qian, Zhu ...

. Xue Yiju's traceable ancestry included officials of the

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 ...

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

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

Middle Chinese

: *''ŋjwei^C'' <

Jin Dynasty (266–420) The Jin dynasty (; ) or the Jin Empire, sometimes distinguished as the (司馬晉) or the (兩晉), was an imperial dynasty of China that existed from 266 to 420. It was founded by Sima Yan (Emperor Wu), eldest son of Sima Zhao, who had pr ...

, and the

— including a line of relatively minor officials. Xue Yiju's grandfather Xue Cuncheng (薛存誠) served as an imperial attendant, while his father Xue Tingwang (薛廷望) served as a prefectural prefect. both were said to have had good reputations.

During Tang Dynasty

Xue Yiju himself was said to be known for elegance and handsomeness. He also associated with other people known for intelligence and elegance and became known as a writer of some renown. He passed the

imperial examination The imperial examination (; lit. "subject recommendation") refers to a civil-service examination system in Imperial China, administered for the purpose of selecting candidates for the state bureaucracy. The concept of choosing bureaucrats by ...

s in the ''Jinshi'' class during the ''Qianfu'' era (874-879) of

Emperor Xizong of Tang Emperor Xizong of Tang (June 8, 862 – April 20, 888), né Li Yan, later name changed to Li Xuan (, changed 873), was an emperor of the Tang dynasty of China. He reigned from 873 to 888. He was the fifth son of his predecessor Emperor Yizong ...

. He thereafter served in a progression of low-level officies in the imperial government — surveyor of budgetary matters (度支巡官, ''Duzhi Xunguan''), assistant at Jixian Institute (集賢院), ''Shiyi'' (拾遺, low-level advisory official), ''Dianzhong Shiyushi'' (殿中侍御史, imperial censor), and ''Qiju Sheren'' (起居舍人, imperial chronicler). He later was made an imperial scholar (翰林學士, ''Hanlin Xueshi''), along with ''Libu Yuanwailang'' (禮部員外郎), a low-level official at the ministry of rites (禮部, ''Lǐbu''), and put in charge of drafting imperial edicts. He was later promoted to be ''Sixun Langzhong'' (司勳郎中), a supervisory official at the ministry of civil service affairs (吏部, ''Lìbu'', note different tone than the ministry of rites). When Emperor Xizong's brother and successor Emperor Zhaozong fled the imperial capital

Chang'an Chang'an (; ) is the traditional name of Xi'an. The site had been settled since Neolithic times, during which the Yangshao culture was established in Banpo, in the city's suburbs. Furthermore, in the northern vicinity of modern Xi'an, Qin Shi ...

in 895 as he was fearful of an attack by the warlords

Li Maozhen Li Maozhen (; 856 – May 17, 924), born Song Wentong (), courtesy name Zhengchen (), formally Prince Zhongjing of Qin (), was the only ruler of the Chinese Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period state Qi (901–924). He had become a powerful wa ...

the military governor (''

Jiedushi The ''jiedushi'' (), or jiedu, was a title for regional military governors in China which was established in the Tang dynasty and abolished in the Yuan dynasty. The post of ''jiedushi'' has been translated as "military commissioner", "legate", ...

'') of Fengxiang Circuit (鳳翔, headquartered in modern

Baoji () is a prefecture-level city in western Shaanxi province, People's Republic of China. Since the early 1990s, Baoji has been the second largest city in Shaanxi. Geography The prefecture-level city of Baoji had a population of 3,321,853 accordin ...

Shaanxi Shaanxi (alternatively Shensi, see #Name, § Name) is a landlocked Provinces of China, province of China. Officially part of Northwest China, it borders the province-level divisions of Shanxi (NE, E), Henan (E), Hubei (SE), Chongqing (S), Sichu ...

) and

Wang Xingyu Wang Xingyu () (d. 895) was a warlord late in the Chinese dynasty Tang Dynasty who controlled Jingnan Circuit (靜難, headquartered in modern Xianyang, Shaanxi) from 887 to his death in 895. At his prime, he and his ally Li Maozhen the military go ...

the military governor of Jingnan Circuit (靜難, headquartered in modern

Xianyang Xianyang () is a prefecture-level city in central Shaanxi province, situated on the Wei River a few kilometers upstream (west) from the provincial capital of Xi'an. Once the capital of the Qin dynasty, it is now integrated into the Xi'an metrop ...

), Xue, instead of immediately following the emperor in flight, was gathering up family members and therefore did not catch up with the emperor; for this reason, he was removed from his offices. However, he was shortly recalled to the imperial government to serve as ''Zhongshu Sheren'' (中書舍人), a mid-level official at the legislative bureau of government (中書省, ''Zhongshu Sheng'') and again became an imperial scholar. He subsequently successively served as the deputy minister of census (戶部侍郎, ''Hubu Shilang'') and of defense (兵部侍郎, ''Bingbu Shilang''), and became chief imperial scholar (翰林學士承旨, ''Hanlin Xueshi Chengzhi''). When Emperor Zhaozong, at the behest of the

Cui Yin Cui Yin (崔胤) (854'' New Book of Tang'', vol. 223, part 2.-February 1, 904''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 264. Academia Sinicabr>Chinese-Western Calendar Converter), courtesy name Chuixiu (垂休), nickname Zilang (緇郎), formally the Duke of Wei (� ...

and the powerful warlord

Zhu Quanzhong Emperor Taizu of Later Liang (), personal name Zhu Quanzhong () (December 5, 852 – July 18, 912), né Zhu Wen (), name later changed to Zhu Huang (), nickname Zhu San (朱三, literally, "the third Zhu"), was a Chinese military general, mona ...

the military governor of Xuanwu Circuit (宣武, headquartered in modern

Kaifeng Kaifeng () is a prefecture-level city in east-central Henan province, China. It is one of the Eight Ancient Capitals of China, having been the capital eight times in history, and is best known for having been the Chinese capital during the Nort ...

Henan Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...

), slaughtered the

eunuch A eunuch ( ) is a male who has been castrated. Throughout history, castration often served a specific social function. The earliest records for intentional castration to produce eunuchs are from the Sumerian city of Lagash in the 2nd millennium ...

s in 903, Xue was found to have painted portraits for some of the slaughtered eunuchs, including

Han Quanhui Han Quanhui (韓全誨) (died February 6, 903''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 263.Academia Sinicabr>Chinese-Western Calendar Converter) was a eunuch late in the Chinese dynasty Tang Dynasty. The struggles by the eunuchs, led by him, against the chancellor ...

, and therefore was exiled. Early in the ''Tianyou'' era (904-907, overlapping the reigns of Emperor Zhaozong and Emperor Zhaozong's son and successor Emperor Ai), by which time Zhu had forced the imperial government to relocate from Chang'an to

Luoyang Luoyang is a city located in the confluence area of Luo River (Henan), Luo River and Yellow River in the west of Henan province. Governed as a prefecture-level city, it borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the ...

,''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 264. an edict was issued commissioning Xue as the deputy minister of civil service affairs (吏部侍郎, ''Libu Shilang''), but Xue did not report to Luoyang to take office. Zhu was said to have respected Xue, and therefore had another edict issued making Xue the minister of civil service affairs (吏部尚書, ''Libu Shangshu''); Xue apparently accepted this office. He was subsequently made chief imperial censor (御史大夫, ''Yushi Daifu''). In spring 907, by which time it was becoming clear that Zhu would eventually take over the throne, Emperor Ai sent Xue to Zhu's headquarters at Daliang to greet Zhu. Xue requested to meet Zhu as if he were a subject of Zhu's — i.e., treating Zhu as an emperor. Zhu initially declined, but ascended stairs. Xue then stated:''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 266. He, therefore, pursuant to ceremony due an emperor at the time, danced to show respect to Zhu toward the north. Zhu only turned his body sideways to show slight humility. Once Xue returned to Luoyang, he reported to Emperor Ai that Zhu was ready to accept the throne, so Emperor Ai prepared to yield the throne. Two months later, with a grand procession from Luoyang to Daliang, Xue (in charge of the secondary imperial seals), along with the chancellors

Zhang Wenwei Zhang Wenwei (張文蔚) (died April 25, 908''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 266. Academia Sinicabr>Chinese-Western Calendar Converter), courtesy name Youhua (右華), was an official of the Chinese Tang Dynasty and Tang's succeeding Later Liang dynasty, ...

(who was to announce the passage of the throne to Zhu) and Yang She (who was to deliver the primary imperial seal), led the ceremony where Zhu accepted the throne, ending Tang and starting Later Liang, with Zhu as its Emperor Taizu. It was said that when Emperor Taizu held a feast for the Tang officials who participated in the ceremony, most Tang officials were humiliated and did not speak, but Xue, Su Xun (蘇循), and Zhang Yi (張禕) spoke in praising the new emperor for his accomplishments.

During Later Liang

Shortly after the dynastic transition, Emperor Taizu made Xue Yiju ''Zhongshu Shilang'' (中書侍郎, deputy head of the legislative bureau) and gave him the designation ''Tong Zhongshu Menxia Pingzhangshi'' (同中書門下平章事), making him a chancellor. He also served as the director of taxation. In 908, he was made ''Menxia Shilang'' (門下侍郎, deputy head of the examination bureau (門下省, ''Menxia Sheng'')), and put in charge of editing the imperial history; he also served as the director of budget. He was later given the additional title of imperial scholar at Hongwen Institute (弘文館) and director of salt and iron monopolies. It was said that during his years as chancellor, however, he had no particular accomplishments. In 912, after accompanying Emperor Taizu on a campaign against Later Liang's rival state Jin, he fell ill, and died shortly after returning to Luoyang. He was given posthumous honors.

Notes and references

* '' History of the Five Dynasties'', vol. 18. * ''

New History of the Five Dynasties The ''Historical Records of the Five Dynasties'' (''Wudai Shiji'') is a Chinese history book on the Five Dynasties period (907–960), written by the Song dynasty official Ouyang Xiu in private. It was drafted during Ouyang's exile from 1036 to ...

'', vol. 35. * ''

'', vols.

266 __NOTOC__ Year 266 ( CCLXVI) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Gallienus and Sabinillus (or, less frequently, year 1019 ...

268 __NOTOC__ Year 268 ( CCLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Paternus and Egnatius (or, less frequently, year 1021 ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Xue, Yiju 9th-century births 912 deaths Tang dynasty politicians Later Liang (Five Dynasties) chancellors Later Liang (Five Dynasties) historians Later Liang (Five Dynasties) people born during Tang 10th-century Chinese historians