Xu Zhixùn
Encyclopedia
Xu Zhixùn (d. 918) was the oldest biological son of Xu Wen
, the regent of the Chinese
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period
state Wu
. He served as the junior regent from 915
to his death in 918
, with his father stationing himself at Jinling away from the capital Guangling (廣陵, in modern Yangzhou
, Jiangsu
). Xu Zhixùn's arrogance alienated the Wu generals, and, in 918, after he angered the general Zhu Jin
, Zhu assassinated him.
's, but was at one point referred to as Sanlang (三郎, "third-born son") by Song Qiqiu, implying that he might have had two older brothers who died in infancy and therefore were not counted in traditional counting of birth order. He had five younger biological brothers, Xu Zhixún
, Xu Zhihui (徐知誨), Xu Zhijian (徐知諫), Xu Zhizheng (徐知證), and Xu Zhi'e (徐知諤). It is not known whether Xu Wen's adoptive son Xu Zhigao
was older or younger than he was, even though it was clear that Xu Zhigao was older than Xu Zhixún.
It was said that Xu Zhixùn tried to learn military strategies when he was young, but was not attentive to his studies. He favored combat games, both armed and unarmed. As, in his youth, Xu Wen had already become the regent of Wu, he, based on his father's status, was carrying out improper actions with impunity.
, apparently in preparation for himself to be stationed outside Guangling, Xu Wen made Xu Zhixùn, who was then a guard commander for the headquarters of Wu's prince Yang Longyan, the deputy commander of the Huainan Circuit (淮南, headquartered at Guangling) armed forces. Later in the year, Xu Wen left Guangling to take up a defense post at Run Prefecture (潤州, in modern Zhenjiang
, Jiangsu
), leaving Xu Zhixùn at Guangling to govern affairs of the state, with he himself only ruling on important matters.
In 916
, the Wu officers Ma Qian (馬謙) and Li Qiu (李球) tried to start a coup against Xu Zhixùn. They seized Yang Longyan and ascended a tower, ordering the soldiers to attack Xu Zhixùn. Xu Zhixùn was about to flee, when the official Yan Keqiu advised him not to, arguing that for him to flee would cause a massive panic. Soon, relief forces launched by Xu Wen from Run Prefecture, commanded by the general Zhu Jin
, arrived. When Zhu called out to the mutineer soldiers to surrender, they panicked and fled. Ma and Li were captured and executed.
Late in 916, Li Cunxu the Prince of Jin, whose Jin state shared a common enemy (Later Liang
) with Wu, requested that Jin and Wu attack Later Liang simultaneously. An Wu army was launched, with Xu Zhixùn and Zhu in command, and they put Later Liang's Ying Prefecture (潁州, in modern Fuyang
, Anhui
) under siege. In spring 917
, though, with the Later Liang general Yuan Xiangxian (袁象先) arriving with a relief force, the Wu army withdrew.
Over the years as junior regent, Xu Zhixùn grew even more arrogant, alienating the Wu officials and officers. He was even disrespectful to Yang Longyan, who was formally his sovereign. For example, once he put on a play with himself playing the character of an army officer and with Yang Longyan playing the character of a servant, following him around abjectly. He also once fired slingshots at Yang Longyan when they both went on a river cruise. On yet another occasion, when they were both watching flowers at Chanzhi Temple (禪智寺), Xu Zhixùn was drunk and became very insulting toward Yang Longyan, such that the prince became fearful and began to cry. The prince's attendants quickly put him on a boat and left the scene. Xu Zhixùn tried to give chase, and when he could not catch up to Yang Longyan, he killed some of Yang Longyan's attendants. Once, when Xu Zhixùn heard that the general Li Decheng (李德誠) had many singing girls in his household, he sent a demand to Li that the singing girls be given to him. When Li responded that these singing girls were too old for Xu and that he would try to find younger and more beautiful ones for Xu, Xu responded to Li's messenger, "One day I will kill Li Decheng and take even his wife!" These unlawful deeds, however, were said to be unreported to Xu Wen as the staff members were fearful of the consequences of reporting.
Xu Zhixùn was similarly arrogant toward his adoptive brother Xu Zhigao, not acknowledging him as a true brother. On an occasion when he gathered the brothers for a feast, Xu Zhigao was unable to attend, causing him to make the remark, "The beggar does not want wine. Does he want a sword?" On another occasion when he was feasting with Xu Zhigao, he had his guards prepare to kill Xu Zhigao once Xu Zhigao would get drunk. His younger brother Xu Zhijian, who was friendly with Xu Zhigao, secretly stepped on Xu Zhigao's foot during the feast to warn him, and Xu Zhigao left the feast, pretending to be going to the latrine. When Xu Zhixùn realized this, he sent his guard Diao Yanneng (刁彥能) to try to chase after Xu Zhigao, but Diao, after catching up to Xu Zhigao and acknowledging Xu Zhigao, returned, claiming to be unable to catch up to Xu Zhigao. It was said that, among his staff members, only Diao dared to advise him to change his ways, and that the reason why the Wu administration did not fall into complete disarray was because Xu Zhijian was assisting him in policy matters. In 917
, when Xu Wen moved his headquarters from Run Prefecture to Sheng Prefecture (昇州, in modern Nanjing
, Jiangsu
) and wanted to make Xu Zhigao, who had been the prefect of Sheng, the military prefect of Run, Xu Zhigao was initially unhappy about not being given Xuan Prefecture (宣州, in modern Xuancheng
, Anhui
) instead. Xu Zhigao's strategist Song Qiqiu pointed out to him that Xu Zhixùn's arrogance would soon bring disaster, and that Run, being just across the Yangtze River
from Guangling, gave him a perfect position to take advantage of this.
, Xu Zhixùn, who then carried the titles of commander of all Huainan cavalry and infantry soldiers, military governor (Jiedushi
) of Changhua Circuit (the location of which was not recorded in history), and the honorary chancellor designation Tong Zhongshu Menxia Pingzhangshi (同中書門下平章事), had also alienated Zhu Jin, who had previously taught him military strategies. On one occasion, Xu tried to rape one of Zhu's servant girls. Further, Zhu, as a senior general, was at that point carrying the high title of deputy supreme commander of the southeastern circuits (with Yang Longyan himself carrying the title of supreme commander) and therefore formally carried a higher position than Xu. Xu was displeased with this and therefore decided to send Zhu out of the capital. He therefore established a Jinghuai Circuit (靜淮) at Si Prefecture (泗州, in modern Huai'an) and made Zhu the military governor. Zhu became hateful of Xu Zhixùn as well, but outwardly pretended to continue to honor Xu Zhixùn.
As Zhu was (outwardly) preparing to leave Jiangdu, Xu Zhixùn went to bid him farewell. Zhu held a feast for him, offered him wine, had Zhu's favorite concubine come outside to greet him and sing for him, and presented Zhu's favorite horse as a gift to him. Zhu then invited him into the middle of Zhu's mansion, where Zhu's wife Lady Tao came out to greet him as well as a sign of respect. Xu Zhixùn was pleased and took no further precautions, while Zhu already had his elite guards surround the hall. As Lady Tao bowed to Xu Zhixùn and he bowed back, Zhu struck him and, as he fell to the ground, Zhu's elite soldiers entered and cut off his head. After Zhu took the head and showed them to Xu Zhixùn's soldiers, they all fled. However, shortly after, Zhu, who failed in his attempt to solicit Yang Longyan's support for this action, was cornered by soldiers under Xu Wen's associate Zhai Qian (翟虔), and committed suicide.
Xu Wen
Xu Wen , born April 13, 1986 in Shanghai), is a versatile Chinese footballer, who plays as either a defensive midfielder or defender for Nanchang Bayi.-Club career:...
, the regent of the Chinese
History of China
Chinese civilization originated in various regional centers along both the Yellow River and the Yangtze River valleys in the Neolithic era, but the Yellow River is said to be the Cradle of Chinese Civilization. With thousands of years of continuous history, China is one of the world's oldest...
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms was between 907–960/979 AD and an era of political upheaval in China, between the fall of the Tang Dynasty and the founding of the Song Dynasty. During this period, five dynasties quickly succeeded one another in the north, and more than 12 independent states were...
state Wu
Wu (Ten Kingdoms)
Wu , also referred to as Huainan , Hongnong , Southern Wu , or Yang Wu , was one of the Ten Kingdoms in south-central China which was in existence between the years of 907 and 937. Its capital was Jiangdu Municipality...
. He served as the junior regent from 915
915
Year 915 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar.- Europe :* Battle of Garigliano: The Christian League defeats the Saracens.* Berengar I of Italy is crowned Holy Roman Emperor....
to his death in 918
918
Year 918 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar.- Asia :* Taebong has been overthrown, and Goryeo established in the Korean peninsula, when Wang Kon ascends the throne at Cheorwon.* The Khitan empire's government occupies a newly walled capital city called Shangjing,...
, with his father stationing himself at Jinling away from the capital Guangling (廣陵, in modern Yangzhou
Yangzhou
Yangzhou is a prefecture-level city in central Jiangsu Province, People's Republic of China. Sitting on the northern bank of the Yangtze River, it borders the provincial capital of Nanjing to the southwest, Huai'an to the north, Yancheng to the northeast, Taizhou to the east, and Zhenjiang across...
, Jiangsu
Jiangsu
' is a province of the People's Republic of China, located along the east coast of the country. The name comes from jiang, short for the city of Jiangning , and su, for the city of Suzhou. The abbreviation for this province is "苏" , the second character of its name...
). Xu Zhixùn's arrogance alienated the Wu generals, and, in 918, after he angered the general Zhu Jin
Zhu Jin
Zhu Jin was a warlord late in the Chinese dynasty Tang Dynasty who would later be a major general of the Wu state during the subsequent Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period...
, Zhu assassinated him.
Background
It is not known when Xu Zhixùn was born, or who his mother was. He was the oldest known biological son of Xu WenXu Wen
Xu Wen , born April 13, 1986 in Shanghai), is a versatile Chinese footballer, who plays as either a defensive midfielder or defender for Nanchang Bayi.-Club career:...
's, but was at one point referred to as Sanlang (三郎, "third-born son") by Song Qiqiu, implying that he might have had two older brothers who died in infancy and therefore were not counted in traditional counting of birth order. He had five younger biological brothers, Xu Zhixún
Xu Zhixún
Xu Zhixún , formally Prince Kang of Donghai , was the second biological son of Xu Wen, the regent of the Chinese Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period state Wu. He had tried to, during Xu Wen's life time, displace his older adoptive brother Xu Zhigao as the junior regent, but was unable to do so...
, Xu Zhihui (徐知誨), Xu Zhijian (徐知諫), Xu Zhizheng (徐知證), and Xu Zhi'e (徐知諤). It is not known whether Xu Wen's adoptive son Xu Zhigao
Emperor Liezu of Southern Tang
Emperor Liezu of Southern Tang , also known as Xianzhu of Southern Tang , personal name Li Bian , earlier also known as Xu Zhigao , courtesy name Zhenglun , nickname Pengnu , was the founder of the Southern Tang kingdom, one of the most successful of the Ten Kingdoms of the...
was older or younger than he was, even though it was clear that Xu Zhigao was older than Xu Zhixún.
It was said that Xu Zhixùn tried to learn military strategies when he was young, but was not attentive to his studies. He favored combat games, both armed and unarmed. As, in his youth, Xu Wen had already become the regent of Wu, he, based on his father's status, was carrying out improper actions with impunity.
As junior regent
In 915915
Year 915 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar.- Europe :* Battle of Garigliano: The Christian League defeats the Saracens.* Berengar I of Italy is crowned Holy Roman Emperor....
, apparently in preparation for himself to be stationed outside Guangling, Xu Wen made Xu Zhixùn, who was then a guard commander for the headquarters of Wu's prince Yang Longyan, the deputy commander of the Huainan Circuit (淮南, headquartered at Guangling) armed forces. Later in the year, Xu Wen left Guangling to take up a defense post at Run Prefecture (潤州, in modern Zhenjiang
Zhenjiang
Zhenjiang is a prefecture-level city in the southwest of Jiangsu province in the eastern People's Republic of China . Sitting on the southern bank of the Yangtze River, it borders the provincial capital of Nanjing to the west, Changzhou to the east, and Yangzhou across the river to the north.Once...
, Jiangsu
Jiangsu
' is a province of the People's Republic of China, located along the east coast of the country. The name comes from jiang, short for the city of Jiangning , and su, for the city of Suzhou. The abbreviation for this province is "苏" , the second character of its name...
), leaving Xu Zhixùn at Guangling to govern affairs of the state, with he himself only ruling on important matters.
In 916
916
Year 916 was a leap year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar.- Asia :* Abaoji of the Khitan empire adopts Chinese court rituals....
, the Wu officers Ma Qian (馬謙) and Li Qiu (李球) tried to start a coup against Xu Zhixùn. They seized Yang Longyan and ascended a tower, ordering the soldiers to attack Xu Zhixùn. Xu Zhixùn was about to flee, when the official Yan Keqiu advised him not to, arguing that for him to flee would cause a massive panic. Soon, relief forces launched by Xu Wen from Run Prefecture, commanded by the general Zhu Jin
Zhu Jin
Zhu Jin was a warlord late in the Chinese dynasty Tang Dynasty who would later be a major general of the Wu state during the subsequent Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period...
, arrived. When Zhu called out to the mutineer soldiers to surrender, they panicked and fled. Ma and Li were captured and executed.
Late in 916, Li Cunxu the Prince of Jin, whose Jin state shared a common enemy (Later Liang
Later Liang
The Later Liang was a state of the Sixteen Kingdoms during the Jin Dynasty in China. It was founded by the Lü family of the Di ethnicity.All rulers of the Later Liang proclaimed themselves "Heavenly Prince" ....
) with Wu, requested that Jin and Wu attack Later Liang simultaneously. An Wu army was launched, with Xu Zhixùn and Zhu in command, and they put Later Liang's Ying Prefecture (潁州, in modern Fuyang
Fuyang
Fuyang may refer to:*Fuyang, Anhui , prefecture-level city in Anhui, China** the Fuyang meteorite of 1977, which fell in Anhui, China *Fuyang, Zhejiang , county-level city in Zhejiang, China...
, Anhui
Anhui
Anhui is a province in the People's Republic of China. Located in eastern China across the basins of the Yangtze River and the Huai River, it borders Jiangsu to the east, Zhejiang to the southeast, Jiangxi to the south, Hubei to the southwest, Henan to the northwest, and Shandong for a tiny...
) under siege. In spring 917
917
Year 917 was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar.- Asia :* The Great Yue Kingdom, later renamed Southern Han, is founded by Liu Yan in Guangdong and Guangxi.- Europe :...
, though, with the Later Liang general Yuan Xiangxian (袁象先) arriving with a relief force, the Wu army withdrew.
Over the years as junior regent, Xu Zhixùn grew even more arrogant, alienating the Wu officials and officers. He was even disrespectful to Yang Longyan, who was formally his sovereign. For example, once he put on a play with himself playing the character of an army officer and with Yang Longyan playing the character of a servant, following him around abjectly. He also once fired slingshots at Yang Longyan when they both went on a river cruise. On yet another occasion, when they were both watching flowers at Chanzhi Temple (禪智寺), Xu Zhixùn was drunk and became very insulting toward Yang Longyan, such that the prince became fearful and began to cry. The prince's attendants quickly put him on a boat and left the scene. Xu Zhixùn tried to give chase, and when he could not catch up to Yang Longyan, he killed some of Yang Longyan's attendants. Once, when Xu Zhixùn heard that the general Li Decheng (李德誠) had many singing girls in his household, he sent a demand to Li that the singing girls be given to him. When Li responded that these singing girls were too old for Xu and that he would try to find younger and more beautiful ones for Xu, Xu responded to Li's messenger, "One day I will kill Li Decheng and take even his wife!" These unlawful deeds, however, were said to be unreported to Xu Wen as the staff members were fearful of the consequences of reporting.
Xu Zhixùn was similarly arrogant toward his adoptive brother Xu Zhigao, not acknowledging him as a true brother. On an occasion when he gathered the brothers for a feast, Xu Zhigao was unable to attend, causing him to make the remark, "The beggar does not want wine. Does he want a sword?" On another occasion when he was feasting with Xu Zhigao, he had his guards prepare to kill Xu Zhigao once Xu Zhigao would get drunk. His younger brother Xu Zhijian, who was friendly with Xu Zhigao, secretly stepped on Xu Zhigao's foot during the feast to warn him, and Xu Zhigao left the feast, pretending to be going to the latrine. When Xu Zhixùn realized this, he sent his guard Diao Yanneng (刁彥能) to try to chase after Xu Zhigao, but Diao, after catching up to Xu Zhigao and acknowledging Xu Zhigao, returned, claiming to be unable to catch up to Xu Zhigao. It was said that, among his staff members, only Diao dared to advise him to change his ways, and that the reason why the Wu administration did not fall into complete disarray was because Xu Zhijian was assisting him in policy matters. In 917
917
Year 917 was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar.- Asia :* The Great Yue Kingdom, later renamed Southern Han, is founded by Liu Yan in Guangdong and Guangxi.- Europe :...
, when Xu Wen moved his headquarters from Run Prefecture to Sheng Prefecture (昇州, in modern Nanjing
Nanjing
' is the capital of Jiangsu province in China and has a prominent place in Chinese history and culture, having been the capital of China on several occasions...
, Jiangsu
Jiangsu
' is a province of the People's Republic of China, located along the east coast of the country. The name comes from jiang, short for the city of Jiangning , and su, for the city of Suzhou. The abbreviation for this province is "苏" , the second character of its name...
) and wanted to make Xu Zhigao, who had been the prefect of Sheng, the military prefect of Run, Xu Zhigao was initially unhappy about not being given Xuan Prefecture (宣州, in modern Xuancheng
Xuancheng
Xuancheng is a prefecture-level city in southeastern Anhui province of Eastern China. It borders Wuhu to the northwest, Chizhou to the west, Huangshan to the southwest, and the provinces of Zhejiang and Jiangsu to the southeast and northeast respectively....
, Anhui
Anhui
Anhui is a province in the People's Republic of China. Located in eastern China across the basins of the Yangtze River and the Huai River, it borders Jiangsu to the east, Zhejiang to the southeast, Jiangxi to the south, Hubei to the southwest, Henan to the northwest, and Shandong for a tiny...
) instead. Xu Zhigao's strategist Song Qiqiu pointed out to him that Xu Zhixùn's arrogance would soon bring disaster, and that Run, being just across the Yangtze River
Yangtze River
The Yangtze, Yangzi or Cháng Jiāng is the longest river in Asia, and the third-longest in the world. It flows for from the glaciers on the Tibetan Plateau in Qinghai eastward across southwest, central and eastern China before emptying into the East China Sea at Shanghai. It is also one of the...
from Guangling, gave him a perfect position to take advantage of this.
Death
By 918918
Year 918 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar.- Asia :* Taebong has been overthrown, and Goryeo established in the Korean peninsula, when Wang Kon ascends the throne at Cheorwon.* The Khitan empire's government occupies a newly walled capital city called Shangjing,...
, Xu Zhixùn, who then carried the titles of commander of all Huainan cavalry and infantry soldiers, military governor (Jiedushi
Jiedushi
The Jiedushi were regional military governors in China during the Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. Originally set up to counter external threats, the jiedushi were given enormous power, including the ability to maintain their own armies, collect taxes, and pass their...
) of Changhua Circuit (the location of which was not recorded in history), and the honorary chancellor designation Tong Zhongshu Menxia Pingzhangshi (同中書門下平章事), had also alienated Zhu Jin, who had previously taught him military strategies. On one occasion, Xu tried to rape one of Zhu's servant girls. Further, Zhu, as a senior general, was at that point carrying the high title of deputy supreme commander of the southeastern circuits (with Yang Longyan himself carrying the title of supreme commander) and therefore formally carried a higher position than Xu. Xu was displeased with this and therefore decided to send Zhu out of the capital. He therefore established a Jinghuai Circuit (靜淮) at Si Prefecture (泗州, in modern Huai'an) and made Zhu the military governor. Zhu became hateful of Xu Zhixùn as well, but outwardly pretended to continue to honor Xu Zhixùn.
As Zhu was (outwardly) preparing to leave Jiangdu, Xu Zhixùn went to bid him farewell. Zhu held a feast for him, offered him wine, had Zhu's favorite concubine come outside to greet him and sing for him, and presented Zhu's favorite horse as a gift to him. Zhu then invited him into the middle of Zhu's mansion, where Zhu's wife Lady Tao came out to greet him as well as a sign of respect. Xu Zhixùn was pleased and took no further precautions, while Zhu already had his elite guards surround the hall. As Lady Tao bowed to Xu Zhixùn and he bowed back, Zhu struck him and, as he fell to the ground, Zhu's elite soldiers entered and cut off his head. After Zhu took the head and showed them to Xu Zhixùn's soldiers, they all fled. However, shortly after, Zhu, who failed in his attempt to solicit Yang Longyan's support for this action, was cornered by soldiers under Xu Wen's associate Zhai Qian (翟虔), and committed suicide.