Lu Chengqing ( zh, 盧承慶; 595–670),

courtesy name A courtesy name ( zh, s=字, p=zì, l=character), also known as a style name, is an additional name bestowed upon individuals at adulthood, complementing their given name. This tradition is prevalent in the East Asian cultural sphere, particula ...

Ziyu (子餘), formally Duke Ding of Fanyang (范陽定公), was a Chinese politician during the

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, c=唐朝), or the Tang Empire, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907, with an Wu Zhou, interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed ...

, serving as

chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

during the reign of Emperor Gaozong.

Background

Lu Chengqing was born in 595, during the reign of

Emperor Wen of Sui Emperor Wen of Sui (; 21 July 541 – 13 August 604), personal name Yang Jian (), Xianbei name Puliuru Jian (), was the founding Emperor of China, emperor of the Chinese Sui dynasty. As a Buddhist, he encouraged the spread of Buddhism through ...

. He was from "The elder house of northern ancestry" (北祖大房) of the prominent Lu clan of Fanyang. His grandfather Lu Sidao was an important official during the

Sui dynasty The Sui dynasty ( ) was a short-lived Dynasties of China, Chinese imperial dynasty that ruled from 581 to 618. The re-unification of China proper under the Sui brought the Northern and Southern dynasties era to a close, ending a prolonged peri ...

. Late in the reign of Emperor Wen's son Emperor Yang, Lu Chengqing's father Lu Chisong (盧赤松) was serving as the magistrate of Hedong County (河東, 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 ...

Shanxi Shanxi; Chinese postal romanization, formerly romanised as Shansi is a Provinces of China, province in North China. Its capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-level cities are Changzhi a ...

), when the general

Li Yuan Emperor Gaozu of Tang (7 April 566 – 25 June 635), born Li Yuan, courtesy name Shude, was the founding emperor of the Tang dynasty of China, reigning from 618 to 626 CE. Under the Sui dynasty, Li Yuan was the governor in the area of modern- ...

rebelled against Emperor Yang's rule at

Taiyuan Taiyuan; Mandarin pronunciation: (Jin Chinese, Taiyuan Jin: /tʰai˦˥ ye˩˩/) is the capital of Shanxi, China. Taiyuan is the political, economic, cultural and international exchange center of Shanxi Province. It is an industrial base foc ...

. Lu Chisong, who had previously known Li Yuan, surrendered as soon as Li Yuan's forces arrived and served on Li Yuan's staff. After Li Yuan established the

as its Emperor Gaozu, he created Lu Chisong the Duke of Fanyang. Lu Chengqing was said to be handsome and attentive to his appearance, but also knowledgeable and capable. When he was young, Lu Chisong died, and so he inherited the title of Duke of Fanyang.

During Emperor Taizong's reign

Early in the reign of Emperor Gaozu's son and successor Emperor Taizong, Lu Chengqing was serving as the census officer for the commandant at Qin Prefecture (秦州, roughly modern

Tianshui Tianshui is a prefecture-level city in Gansu province, China, and is the province's second-largest city (behind the provincial capital Lanzhou). Located in the southeast of the province, the city strides along the upper reaches of the Wei River a ...

Gansu Gansu is a provinces of China, province in Northwestern China. Its capital and largest city is Lanzhou, in the southeastern part of the province. The seventh-largest administrative district by area at , Gansu lies between the Tibetan Plateau, Ti ...

), when he had an opportunity to report to Emperor Taizong the status of military affairs west of the

Yellow River The Yellow River, also known as Huanghe, is the second-longest river in China and the List of rivers by length, sixth-longest river system on Earth, with an estimated length of and a Drainage basin, watershed of . Beginning in the Bayan H ...

(i.e., in modern central

). Emperor Taizong was impressed by the clarity of his report, and promoted him to be a low-level official at the ministry of civil service. He was later promoted to by the deputy minister of census. On one occasion, when Emperor Taizong asked about historical population counts, Lu discussed historical population counts all the way from the

Xia dynasty The Xia dynasty (; ) is the first dynasty in traditional Chinese historiography. According to tradition, it was established by the legendary figure Yu the Great, after Emperor Shun, Shun, the last of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, Fiv ...

and

Shang dynasty The Shang dynasty (), also known as the Yin dynasty (), was a Chinese royal dynasty that ruled in the Yellow River valley during the second millennium BC, traditionally succeeding the Xia dynasty and followed by the Western Zhou d ...

, down to Tang's immediate predecessors

Northern Zhou Zhou (), known in historiography as the Northern Zhou (), was a Xianbei-led Dynasties in Chinese history, dynasty of China that lasted from 557 to 581. One of the Northern and Southern dynasties#Northern dynasties, Northern dynasties of China's ...

and Sui. Emperor Taizong was impressed, and soon made him the deputy minister of defense but further also made him in charge of civil service matters. Lu initially declined, stating, "Civil service matters should be in the hands of the minister of civil service, and for me to handle them would be to exceed my authorities." Emperor Taizong insisted, stating, "I trust you. Why do you not trust yourself?" He later also served as deputy secretary general of the capital prefecture, Yong Prefecture (雍州, roughly modern

Xi'an Xi'an is the list of capitals in China, capital of the Chinese province of Shaanxi. A sub-provincial city on the Guanzhong plain, the city is the third-most populous city in Western China after Chongqing and Chengdu, as well as the most populou ...

Shaanxi Shaanxi is a Provinces of China, province in north Northwestern China. It borders the province-level divisions of Inner Mongolia to the north; Shanxi and Henan to the east; Hubei, Chongqing, and Sichuan to the south; and Gansu and Ningxia to t ...

), and secretary general of the executive bureau of government (尚書省, ''Shangshu Sheng'').

During Emperor Gaozong's reign

Early in the reign of Emperor Taizong's son and successor Emperor Gaozong, who became emperor in 649 following Emperor Taizong's death, for reasons unknown, it was said that the powerful chancellor

Chu Suiliang Chǔ Suìliáng (596–658), courtesy name Dengshan, formally the Duke of Henan, was a Chinese calligrapher, historian, and politician who served as a chancellor during the reigns of the emperors Taizong and Gaozong in the Tang dynasty. He beca ...

wrongly accused Lu Chengqing of faults. Lu was demoted to be the secretary general to the commandant at Yi Prefecture (益州, roughly modern

Chengdu Chengdu; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: ; Chinese postal romanization, previously Romanization of Chinese, romanized as Chengtu. is the capital city of the Chinese province of Sichuan. With a ...

Sichuan Sichuan is a province in Southwestern China, occupying the Sichuan Basin and Tibetan Plateau—between the Jinsha River to the west, the Daba Mountains to the north, and the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the south. Its capital city is Cheng ...

). Thereafter, Chu further accused Lu of misconduct while serving as the deputy secretary general at Yong Prefecture, and Lu was further demoted to be the military advisor to the prefect of Jian Prefecture (簡州, roughly modern

Ziyang Ziyang ( zh, s=资阳 , t=資陽 , p=Zīyáng , w=Tzu-yang) is a prefecture-level city in eastern Sichuan province, China. It is bordered by the provincial capital of Chengdu to the northwest, Deyang to the north, Suining to the northeast, Chong ...

). After about a year, he was then made the secretary general of Hong Prefecture (洪州, roughly modern

Nanchang Nanchang is the capital of Jiangxi, China. Located in the north-central part of the province and in the hinterland of Poyang Lake Plain, it is bounded on the west by the Jiuling Mountains, and on the east by Poyang Lake. Because of its strate ...

Jiangxi ; Gan: ) , translit_lang1_type2 = , translit_lang1_info2 = , translit_lang1_type3 = , translit_lang1_info3 = , image_map = Jiangxi in China (+all claims hatched).svg , mapsize = 275px , map_caption = Location ...

). On one occasion, when Emperor Gaozong was set to visit warm springs in Ru Prefecture (汝州, roughly modern

Pingdingshan Pingdingshan ( zh, s=平顶山, t=平頂山, p=Píngdǐngshān), also known as Eagle City ( zh, s=鹰城, p=Yīngchéng, t=鷹城), is a prefecture-level city in central Henan province, China. It had 4,904,701 inhabitants at the 2010 census who ...

Henan Henan; alternatively Honan is a province in Central China. Henan is home to many heritage sites, including Yinxu, the ruins of the final capital of the Shang dynasty () and the Shaolin Temple. Four of the historical capitals of China, Lu ...

), he promoted Lu to be the prefect of Ru Prefecture, and soon recalled him to the capital to serve as director of vassal affairs. In 657, when the general

Su Dingfang Su Dingfang () (591–667), formal name Su Lie () but went by the courtesy name of Dingfang, formally Duke Zhuang of Xing (), was a Chinese military general of the Tang dynasty who succeeded in destroying the Western Turkic Khaganate in 657. He wa ...

destroyed Western Tujue and captured its Shabuolüe Khan Ashina Helu (阿史那賀魯), it was Lu that Emperor Gaozong sent to Western Tujue lands to divide the lands between two Western Tujue princes loyal to Tang, Ashina Mishe (阿史那彌射), who was created the Xinxiwang Khan, and Ashina Buzhen (阿史那步真), who was created the Jiwangjue Khan. Emperor Gaozong further ordered Lu, along with Ashina Mishe and Ashina Buzhen, to grant the various tribal chiefs appropriate official titles. As of 659, Lu was serving as the minister of treasury, when he was given the designation ''Canzhi Zhengshi'' (參知政事), making him a

''de facto''. Later that year, when the former chancellor and Emperor Gaozong's uncle

Zhangsun Wuji Zhangsun Wuji (; died 659), courtesy name Fuji (), formally the Duke of Zhao, was a Chinese politician who served as a chancellor in the early Tang dynasty. He was Empress Zhangsun's brother, which made him a brother-in-law of Emperor Taizong ( ...

, who had already been exiled on suspicion of treason, was accused of further plotting, Lu, along with fellow chancellors Li Ji,

Xu Jingzong Xu Jingzong (592 – September 20, 672), courtesy name Yanzu, posthumously known as Duke Gong of Gaoyang, was a Chinese cartographer, historian, and politician who served as a chancellor in the Tang dynasty. Allied with Emperor Gaozong's power ...

, Xin Maojiang, and Ren Yaxiang were put in charge of the investigation (although it was Xu, who was an ally of Emperor Gaozong's powerful wife Empress Wu (later known as Wu Zetian), who drove the investigation), which resulted in Zhangsun's forced suicide. Yet later that year, Lu was given the designation of ''Tong Zhongshu Menxia Sanpin'' (同中書門下三品), a more honored designation for a chancellor ''de facto''. However, in 660, he was accused of mishandling the ministry of treasury, and he was removed from his offices, and further was sent to Run Prefecture (潤州, roughly modern

Zhenjiang Zhenjiang, alternately romanized as Chinkiang, is a prefecture-level city in Jiangsu Province, China. It lies on the southern bank of the Yangtze River near its intersection with the Grand Canal. It is opposite Yangzhou (to its north) and ...

Jiangsu Jiangsu is a coastal Provinces of the People's Republic of China, province in East China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its capital in Nanjing. Jiangsu is the List of Chinese administra ...

) to be its prefect. He was subsequently made the secretary general of Yong Prefecture and given the honorific title ''Yinqing Guanglu Daifu'' (銀青光祿大夫). In 669, he was made the minister of justice. He soon requested retirement on account of old age, and Emperor Gaozong agreed, further giving him the honorific title of ''Jinzi Guanglu Daifu'' (金紫光祿大夫). Lu died in 670 and was buried with honors. Prior to his death, he gave this order to his sons:

Family

Younger Brothers

* Lu Cheng'en (盧承恩) * Lu Chengti (盧承悌) * Lu Chengji (盧承基) * Lu Chengye (盧承業) * Lu Chengtai (盧承泰) * Lu Chengli (盧承禮) * Lu Chengfu (盧承福)

Sons

* According to ''New Book of Tang'' vol. 73, Lu Chengqing only had a son named Lu Xu (盧諝), who would serve as director of ministry of personnel (吏部郎中). Lu Xu had two sons: Lu Yun (盧鄖), prefect of Chu (滁州); Lu Yuan (盧垣), whose son Lu Youlin (盧幼臨) would serve as director of ministry of justice (刑部郎中).

References

* ''

Old Book of Tang The ''Old Book of Tang'', or simply the ''Book of Tang'', is the first classic historical work about the Tang dynasty, comprising 200 chapters, and is one of the Twenty-Four Histories. Originally compiled during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdo ...

'', vol. 85. * ''

New Book of Tang The ''New Book of Tang'', generally translated as the "New History of the Tang" or "New Tang History", is a work of official history covering the Tang dynasty in ten volumes and 225 chapters. The work was compiled by a team of scholars of the So ...

'', vol.

106 106 may refer to: * 106 (number), the number * AD 106, a year in the 2nd century AD * 106 BC, a year in the 2nd century BC * 106 (emergency telephone number), an Australian emergency number * 106 (MBTA bus), a route of the Massachusetts Bay Transpor ...

. * ''

Zizhi Tongjian The ''Zizhi Tongjian'' (1084) is a chronicle published during the Northern Song dynasty (960–1127) that provides a record of Chinese history from 403 BC to 959 AD, covering 16 dynasties and spanning almost 1400 years. The main text is ...

'', vols.

200 Year 200 ( CC) was a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Severus and Victorinus (or, less frequently, year 953 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 200 for this y ...

, 201. {{DEFAULTSORT:Lu, Chengqing 595 births 670 deaths Chancellors under Emperor Gaozong of Tang Lu clan of Fanyang Sui dynasty people