by C. T. Hsia
22. Zhang Liang’s father and grandfather served five Hán kings (Shiji 55.2033). (We have added the tone mark to avoid confusion of Hán the Warring States kingdom with the Han dynasty.) Sima Qian implies that revenge motivated Zhang Liang’s attempt to assassinate the Qin emperor at Bolangsha (Shiji 55.2034). Here the playwright turns vengeance into Zhang Liang’s motive for supporting Liu Bang against Xiang Yu.
23. In order to tighten rule over the country, the First Emperor burned the historical records of other states as well as the writings of the various masters. Four hundred and sixty scholars (or, according to some scholars, ritual specialists) were buried alive (Shiji 6.258).
24. Literally, “Together they pursued the Qin deer.” Kuai Tong describes the struggle for supremacy during the Qin-Han transition: “Qin lost its deer: all under heaven pursued that deer and those with great talent and swift of feet will get there first” (Shiji 92.2629).
25. There is no mention of Zhang Liang’s holding the position of chancellor (situ 司徒) in Shiji.
26. Chenliu (near Kaifeng in present-day Henan) was made a prefecture under the Qin. The playwright seems to have confused Zhang Liang’s fief in Liu (in Pei county in present-day Jiangsu) with Chenliu. Xiapi was where Zhang Liang hid as a fugitive after his unsuccessful assassination attempt. The palace manuscript has two extra lines here: “Back then the emperor bowed to the grand marshal, / And appointed Han Xin as commander of troops that surged forth.”
27. At the beginning of the chapter devoted to Zhang Liang in Shiji, Sima Qian describes Zhang’s encounter with an old man who gives him the Grand Duke’s Treatise on the Art of War (Taigong bingfa 太公兵法) after a series of tests that confirm Zhang’s humility and patience. The old man tells Zhang Liang to study the book and to meet him thirteen years later at the foot of Mount Gucheng. At the appointed time and place, Zhang sees a yellow stone (Shiji 55.2034–35, 2048). There is a structural parallel between Zhang Liang’s encounter with the old man and Han Xin’s submission to bullying youths in their respective chapters in Shiji. In both cases, humility and self-discipline bode future greatness.
28. Lü Wang, also called Grand Duke Wang, or Jiang Ziya, was the adviser of King Wu of Zhou. He is credited with a key role in the Zhou conquest of Shang (eleventh century B.C.E.).
29. In the final battle between Chu and Han, Xiang Yu is said to realize his irreversible defeat when he hears besieging Han soldiers singing the songs of Chu (Shiji 7.333).
30. Palace manuscript (lines 9–12): “I sent Peng Yue to expeditions north and south, / And had Ying Bu lead campaigns east and west. / At Gaixia all eight thousand followers had dispersed: / There was not a single soldier before him.”
31. Xiang Yu is said to have double pupils (chongchong 重瞳) (Shiji 7.338). Sima Qian cites this as possible “evidence” that Xiang Yu might have been descended from the sage-king Shun, also said to have had double pupils.
32. Xiang Yu feels that his losses are such that he cannot face his erstwhile supporters “east of the River”; he thus falls on his sword at Black River (Wujiang) (Shiji 7.336). Palace manuscript: “Lord Pei of Liu ascended the imperial throne, / The double-pupiled one of Chu was ashamed to come east. / In the capital, a ruler was set up to gain sway over the realm. / That Xiang Yu fell on his sword by the Black River was heaven-ordained fate.”
33. Palace manuscript (lines 3–5): “Who was willing to establish the foundation of rule, help with the altars of the state, and uphold imperial dignity? / If back then he did not give his wholehearted support— / Prime Minister, when you have a moment, you should count with your fingers and think how it happened from the beginning.”
34. For the term bai’er shanhe, “by mountains and rivers fortified,” see chap. 1, this volume, n. 50.
35. “Pervert justice” is literally “raise the dishonest and push aside the honest.” See Lunyu zhushu 2.19: “Raise the honest and push aside the dishonest, and the people will submit. Raise the dishonest and push aside the honest, and the people will not submit.” (Translations in the notes in this volume of lines or passages from other texts are original translations unless otherwise indicated.)
36. During the Qin-Han transition, Xiang Yu enfeoffed three lords, supposed descendants of the kingdom of Qi, in the Shandong area (Shiji 7.316–17). The “three Qi regions” refer to the area formerly under the control of these three lords.
37. Tuilun tuigu 推輪推轂 means, literally, “push the wheel and push the axis.” The term implies humility and is used to indicate support or elevation of another person (Shiji 51.1995, 102.2758, 107.2843).
38. After Han Xin pacified Qi, he asked to be made proxy king (jiawang 假王) of Qi. Greatly angered, Liu Bang was about to reject the request when Zhang Liang and Chen Ping stealthily stepped on his foot. Realizing the imprudence of any confrontation, Liu Bang changed his tune and offered instead to make Han Xin the real king of Qi (Shiji 92.2621).
39. Palace manuscript (lines 5–6): “Now we should rejoice in peace, / (Fan Kuai: Chancellor, Han Xin is one who crawled between the legs of another.) / You say that he was a petty thief of melons and grains.”
40. In 207 B.C.E., Han Xin defeated Chen Yu, one of the regional powers during the Qin-Han transition, in a famous battle with Han troops backing up against a river—a battle formation that strategists were taught to avoid. Han Xin achieved victory by having Han troops infiltrate Chen’s camp earlier (Shiji 92.2615–17).
41. In 207 B.C.E., Han Xin attacked Dai and captured the Dai minister Xia Yue (Shiji 92.2613–14). Instead of Chen Yu and Xia Yue, the palace manuscript has Xia Yue and Zhang Tong.
42. In 203 B.C.E., the Chu general Long Ju confronted Han Xin at the River Wei. (Note that in the play the site of battle is misidentified as the River Huai.) Han achieved victory by first blocking the river upstream and then removing the sandbags as Long Ju’s army was crossing the river (Shiji 92.2620–21).
43. In 207 B.C.E., Han Xin defeated Wei Bao (King of Wei) by pretending to marshal his forces to cross the river at Linjin while stealthily ferrying Han troops on floats upstream (Shiji 92.2613–14). In the same year Han Xin, following Kuai Tong’s advice, conquered Qi even though Han had just declared a truce with Qi (Shiji 92.2620). Palace manuscript (line 8): “And he also overthrew Xiang Yu.”
44. After Xiang Yu killed himself, Han soldiers vied to claim his body or at least body parts, and five Han officers were made lords “because when the five put together the head and limbs, they all belonged to him.” Sima Qian describes the scene with obvious disdain for these five officers (Shiji 7.336).
45. The “Nine-Mile Mountain” (in modern-day Xuzhou, Jiangsu) is not mentioned in Shiji. However, fiction and drama on the Chu-Han struggle often name this as the site of an important battle. It is mentioned, for example, in Xiao He Pursues Han Xin in the Moonlit Night. There is another Yuan play titled Ambush on Ten Sides at Nine-Mile Mountain (Jiuli shan shimian maifu 九里山十面埋伏). It is no longer extant, but one act is preserved in Guo Xun’s 郭勛 Yong Xi yuefu 雍熙樂府 (first printed in 1561). We have rendered li 里 as “mile,” although one li is only about a third of a mile.
46. The “Eight Trigram” formation has been associated with Zhuge Liang 諸葛亮 (181–234) and becomes a byword for masterful battle formation in fiction and drama. Here it is anachronistically associated with Han Xin.
47. Palace manuscript (line 6): “Clearly, at the apparent gap of the battle formation, troops in ambush attacked.”
48. According to Sima Qian, Zhang Liang declares his indifference to worldly success and wants to pursue Daoist self-cultivation with Master Red Pine (Chisongzi 赤松子) (Shiji 55.2048). The Shiji account also implies that Zhang Liang’s Daoist elusiveness is instrumental to his self-preservation and success. Master Red Pine becomes a god of rain in later Daoist lore (Liexian zhuan jiaojian, 1–4).
49. Palace manuscript (lines 1–2): “I want to brush off dusty remains / And worldly commotion.”
50. “Bells and
tripods,” short for “bells ringing for food served in tripods” (zhongming dingshi 鐘鳴鼎食), are the paraphernalia of an aristocratic existence.
51. Palace manuscript (lines 4–8): “Taking leave of the Jade Hall and golden horse, / I am content to live in a thatched hut. / For cultivation of the Way my model is Fan Li. / I look back and the fate of Qu Yuan deplore. / I will go to the mountains to seek the Hoary Four.”
52. Zhang Liang secures the assistance of the four aged recluses (the Hoary Four) to convince Liu Bang that he should keep Liu Ying (the future Emperor Hui) his heir. Liu Bang had been tempted to name the son of his favorite consort, Lady Qi, as heir, but the apparent support of the Hoary Four for Liu Ying deters him (Shiji 55.2044–45). While the four old men function as a political ploy that aligns Zhang Liang with Empress Lü (Liu Ying’s mother) in Shiji, here they become a symbol of reclusion.
53. The original uses Qu Yuan’s (ca. fourth to third centuries B.C.E.) official title, “Three Gates Minister,” which syntactically parallels “Four Hoary Ones.” Longing for escape, Zhang Liang is reminded of the lamentable fate of Qu Yuan, who ends up throwing himself into the Miluo River when his remonstrance is not heeded by the Chu king (Shiji 84.2490).
54. The last aria of act 1 in the palace manuscript (“Coda”): “Better to have a rich life savoring pine seeds; / a poor life gathering ferns points to a path of survival. / Then my lifelong wish will be fulfilled. / Free from care, free from want, wherever I go or stay. / Even if I can’t help the fifth watch chill stinging me every night, / Think again: I will brush my sleeves in a mountain abode, / With tea, herbs, zither, chess, brush, and books all in place. / Just because Marshal Han will fall, / I must turn withdrawal into my dictum, / And let the myriad spirits support the emperor’s peacetime system.”
55. Xunzi jishi 25.579, “Chengxian” 成相: “The carriage ahead is already overturned, but one does not know when the carriage behind will take heed.” Yanzi chunqiu jishi 6.405: “The carriage in front is overturned, the carriage behind is warned.”
56. According to Sima Qian, it is the minister Chen Ping who devises this ruse (Shiji 56.2056–57).
57. These are later listed in Fan Kuai’s speech in act 4.
58. The Chinese term, bianshi 辨士, means, literally, “rhetorician,” “persuader,” or “one adept with words.”
59. Palace manuscript (line 2): “He gave you the real seal to forestall losing.”
60. Literally, “hands folded in front, with clothes draping down” (gongshou chuiyi 拱手垂衣). This implies a style of government that is noninterventionist yet effective.
61. Palace manuscript (line 8): “Back then he already diminished your power over the troops, for suspicions had arisen.”
62. Palace manuscript: “To what end did you smote powerful Qin in five years, / And destroyed the overlord in three? / … / To think that you wiped out Chu and raised Liu to power, / Exerting utmost effort and loyalty— / What is your scheme for extricating yourself?”
63. Literally, “he took off his robe to put it on me and pushed his food toward me to feed me.” These are Han Xin’s words in Shiji (92.2622) when he refuses to follow the advice of Wu She (Xiang Yu’s agent) to divide the realm into three.
64. Lunyu zhushu 7.38: “The Master is gentle, yet firm, imposing, yet not overbearing.” Lüshi chunqiu jiaoshi 16.1003: “Exalted, yet not toppling, so that one can keep lasting distinction; filled to the brim, yet not overflowing, so that one can keep lasting wealth.”
65. Literally, “you will die (an unnatural death) and will not be properly buried.”
66. Fan Li served King Goujian of Yue and had a crucial role in the Wu-Yue struggle in the sixth century B.C.E. After Wu’s defeat, Fan Li withdrew from service and became a recluse at the Five Lakes (Shiji 41.1740–55). Another chapter in Shiji chronicles Fan’s adventures as a rich merchant (Shiji 129.3255–58).
67. Palace manuscript (lines 1–5): “One was a benevolent man who delighted in mountains, / One was a wise man who delighted in waters. / The two of them left office and became free, / Abandoned their positions and left, / Brushed their sleeves and went home.” The first two lines allude to Lunyu zhushu 3.23.
68. Liu Bang disliked Yong Chi but, in order to demonstrate his impartiality and to calm the fears of his supporters, nevertheless made him a lord at Zhang Liang’s suggestion (Shiji 8.351, 55.2042–43). Ding Gu (Lord Ding) was a Chu general who defected to Han and contributed to Han success, but Liu Bang had him executed for disloyalty to Chu (Shiji 100.2733). Rewards and punishments thus depend on Han interests and Liu Bang’s reasoning rather than justice. Kuai Tong may also be implying a hidden analogy between Ding Gu and Han Xin, who also started out as Xiang Yu’s follower.
69. Literally, “Extreme good fortune will often breed its reversal.” The hexagram “Good Fortune” (Tai 泰) (no. 11) comes right before the hexagram “Reversal” (Pi 否) (no. 12) in the Classic of Changes (Yijing 易經).
70. Palace manuscript, “Coda” (lines 1–2): “He wouldn’t come, / He wouldn’t come.”
71. Sui He is famous for his rhetoric; he convinced Ying Bu, King of Jiujiang, to switch his allegiance from Chu to Han (Shiji 8.371–72, 91.2599–2602).
72. Anthology has the unusual expression fenlan 粉濫 (powder in excess). The palace manuscript shows the correction fenlan 粉爛 (tattered as powder).
73. After the Yue victory over Wu, Fan Li writes to his fellow official Wen Zhong, urging him to withdraw from politics: “When the soaring birds are no more, the good bow will be put away; when the cunning hares are dead, the running hound will be boiled” (Shiji 41.1746–47). Fan Kuai cites this saying (Shiji 92.2625), and Han Xin repeats these words when he is charged with treason (Shiji 92.2627).
74. Palace manuscript (lines 9–13): “A light shines on Xianyang: / Watch the Big Crab [an asterism]. / Cosmic signs in the sky show unmistakable defeat. / The Civil Stars shine brightly still, / the Martial Stars should be clearly visible—but where are they now?”
75. Kuai Tong is referring to the punishment of being “boiled alive” in a cauldron.
76. Palace manuscript (line 7): “Truly, it is the brush that makes final judgments for mountains and rivers.” The implication is that although the three aforementioned generals established the Han dynasty, it is arbitrary decisions from the emperor and the civil officials that determine the balance of power.
77. Palace manuscript, “King of Holy Medicine”: “You can use your errant words, / But what do I hope to get? / This is why I feign madness. / It’s not because I let my words stray: / You betrayed him. / He built the world of Liu dynasty and the realm of Han. / Mine is not the Basin Song of Zhuangzi.” Zhuangzi is said to drum a basin and sing when his wife dies in a gesture that shows his transcendence of human joys and sorrows. While Zhuangzi’s song and Kuai Tong’s behavior may seem equally irrational, Kuai Tong is saying that his “mad song,” unlike that of Zhuangzi, springs from genuine grief and outrage.
78. Cao Can started out as a prison guard in Pei county and was an early supporter of Liu Bang’s. He served as prime minister after Xiao He (Shiji 54). Wang Ling, also a Pei native, became “prime minister of the right” after Cao Can (Shiji 56.2059–60).
79. This is a common idiom in drama referring to important ministers or generals. “Purple gold” is a rare mineral whose exact nature is not known. According to the Ming scholar Cao Zhao (late fourteenth century), his contemporaries used the term to refer to a metal made from smelting gold and bronze (Gegu yaolun 2.17b).
80. Palace manuscript (lines 5–6): “Why speak about expanding the empire or opening frontiers? / They are totally unafraid of the people’s vocal outrage.”
81. In the locus classicus of this saying from Zhanguo ce (13.462), it is the hound of Bandit Zhi that barks at a sage-king. Kuai Tong uses the same analogy in Shiji 92.2629.
82. Palace manuscript (lines 5–6): “With death-defying feats, he lay blood-soaked by the wayside, / And the minister’s black
canopy flew over his head.”
83. A saying often quoted in Yuan drama: “The phoenix alights on the parasol tree; / There will be those who with right and wrong make free” (Fenghuang fei zai wutong shang zi you pangren shuo duanchang 鳳凰飛在梧桐上，自有旁人説短長). The implication is that this is an action inviting disparagement and rumors.
84. See chap. 1, this volume, n. 23. According to Qin and Han law, treason was punished by having “three sets of relations” (sanzu 三族) killed. Implicating “the nine sets of relations” is a later idea.
85. Zhang Liang advised Liu Bang to burn the plank road leading from Guanzhong to Ba Shu (Shiji 55.2039) to convince Xiang Yu that he had no ambition to march east. Some later literary traditions (e.g., Yuan plays such as Secretly Passing Through Chencang [Andu Chencang 暗渡陳倉] and Provoking Ying Bu [Qi Ying Bu 氣英布]) maintain that Han Xin later diverts Xiang Yu’s attention by repairing the plank road while attacking Chu from another route via Chencang.
86. Zhang Han, Sima Xin, and Dong Yi were Qin generals who defected to Chu. Xiang Yu made them kings of Qin. On Han Xin’s plan to defeat the three Qin kings, see Shiji 92.2612.
87. Ibid., 2613.
88. Ibid., 2615–16.
89. Ibid., 2614.
90. Ibid., 2620.
91. Ibid., 2620–21.
92. According to Shiji 56.2054, Han Xin’s troops were stationed at Guangwu, but it is not clear what role he had in “managing the confrontation” between Han and Chu (Shiji 7.327–28, 8.376–77).
93. According to Shiji, that is the juncture when Kuai tried to persuade Han Xin to rebel (Shiji 92.2623–26).
94. In 203 B.C.E., when Xiang Yu besieged Liu Bang first at Yingyang and then at Chenggao, Liu fled to Xiuwu, took control of Han Xin’s troops at Xiuwu, and sent Han Xin to attack Qi (Shiji 92.2619).
95. The story is cited in the speeches of Su Qin, a famous Warring States rhetorician (Shiji 69.2264–65). In the story a concubine dares not speak up because she is caught between loyalty to her master and to her mistress. She deliberately spills the poisoned wine that her mistress is using to poison her husband and suffers punishment as a result.