Xue Ji (; 649 – July 29, 713兩千年中西曆轉換
/ref>),

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 ...

Sitong (嗣通), was a Chinese calligrapher, painter, and politician of 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 ...

, briefly 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 Ruizong. He was considered one of the four greatest calligraphers of early Tang, along with

Yu Shinan Yu Shinan (558 – 11 July 638), courtesy name Boshi, posthumously known as Duke Wenyi of Yongxing, was a Chinese calligrapher and politician who lived in the early Tang dynasty and rose to prominence during the reign of Emperor Taizong. His u ...

Ouyang Xun Ouyang Xun ( zh, c=歐陽詢, w=Ou-yang Hsün, p=Ōuyáng Xún; 557–641), courtesy name Xinben ( zh, c=信本, w=Hsin-pên, p=Xìn běn), was a Chinese calligrapher, politician, and writer of the early Tang dynasty. He was born in Changsha, Huna ...

, and Chu Suiliang.

Background

Xue Ji was born in 649, the first year of the reign of

Emperor Gaozong of Tang Emperor Gaozong of Tang (21 July 628 – 27 December 683), personal name Li Zhi, was the third Emperor of China, emperor of the Chinese Tang dynasty, ruling from 649 to 683; after January 665, he handed power over the empire to his second wife ...

. He was a great-grandson of Xue Daoheng (薛道衡), an important official of the preceding

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 ...

. Xue Yuanchao – a

during Emperor Gaozong's reign – was a cousin to his grandfather Xue Xingcheng (薛行成). Xue Xingcheng was a county magistrate, and Xue Ji's father Xue Renwei (薛仁偉) was not recorded with any official titles.''

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. 73, part 2. However, it is known that Xue Ji's mother was a daughter of the famed chancellor

Wei Zheng Wei Zheng (580 – 11 February 643), courtesy name Xuancheng, posthumous name Duke Wenzhen of Zheng, was a Chinese politician and historian. He served as a chancellor of the Tang dynasty for about 13 years during the reign of Emperor Taizong. H ...

. Xue Ji passed the

imperial examination The imperial examination was a civil service examination system in History of China#Imperial China, Imperial China administered for the purpose of selecting candidates for the Civil service#China, state bureaucracy. The concept of choosing bureau ...

s at one point, although the date is not known. Late in the reign of Emperor Gaozong's wife

Wu Zetian Wu Zetian (624 – 16 December 705), personal name Wu Zhao, was List of rulers of China#Tang dynasty, Empress of China from 660 to 705, ruling first through others and later in her own right. She ruled as queen consort , empress consort th ...

, he served as an imperial attendant, along with her lovers Zhang Yizhi and Zhang Changzong and several officials with literary talents, including Ji Xu, Tian Guidao (田歸道), Li Jiongxiu, and Yuan Banqian (員半千).

During Emperor Zhongzong's second reign

As of the second reign of Emperor Gaozong's and Wu Zetian's son Emperor Zhongzong (705-710), Xue Ji was serving as ''Zhongshu Sheren'' (中書舍人), a mid-level official at the legislative bureau of government (中書省, ''Zhongshu Sheng''). At that time, his second cousin Xue Yao (薛曜) was serving at the examination bureau (門下省, ''Menxia Sheng''), and both of them were known for their literary talent. Later in Emperor Zhongzong's reign, he served as ''Jianyi Daifu'' (諫議大夫), an imperial advisor, and also served as an imperial scholar at Zhaowen Pavilion (昭文館). As his grandfather Wei Zheng's household held many important literary and artistic works, he had access to many calligraphic works of

and Chu Suiliang, and he, following their style, was a well-known calligrapher himself. He was also an accomplished painter. At that time, Emperor Zhongzong's brother Li Dan the Prince of Xiang was also a calligrapher, and he became acquainted with Xue. As part of this relationship, he married his daughter Princess Xianyuan to Xue's son Xue Boyang (薛伯陽).

During Emperor Shang's reign and Emperor Ruizong's second reign

In 710, Emperor Zhongzong died suddenly—a death traditional historians believed to be a poisoning carried out by his powerful wife Empress Wei and her daughter Li Guo'er the

Princess Anle Princess Anle (; 684? – 21 July 710), personal name Li Guo'er (), was a Chinese princess of the Tang dynasty. She was the youngest daughter of Emperor Zhongzong and his wife Empress Wei. Popular history holds that she was doted upon heavily ...

, so that Empress Wei could become "emperor" like Wu Zetian, and Li Guo'er could become crown princess. Meanwhile, Emperor Zhongzong's son by a

concubine Concubinage is an interpersonal relationship, interpersonal and Intimate relationship, sexual relationship between two people in which the couple does not want to, or cannot, enter into a full marriage. Concubinage and marriage are often regarde ...

, Li Chongmao the Prince of Wen, was named emperor (as Emperor Shang), but Empress Wei retained power as

empress dowager Empress dowager (also dowager empress or empress mother; ) is the English language translation of the title given to the mother or widow of a monarch, especially in regards to Chinese, Japanese, Korean, or Vietnamese monarchs in the Chines ...

and

regent In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...

. Less than a month later, Emperor Zhongzong's sister

Princess Taiping Princess Taiping (, lit. "Princess of Great Peace", personal name unknown, possibly Li Lingyue (李令月) (after 662 – 2 August 713) was a royal princess and prominent political figure of the Tang dynasty and her mother Wu Zetian's Zhou dyna ...

and nephew Li Longji the Prince of Linzi (Li Dan's son) rose in rebellion and killed Empress Dowager Wei and Li Guo'er. Li Dan, himself a former emperor, was restored to the throne (as Emperor Ruizong), displacing Emperor Shang. One of the chancellors that Emperor Ruizong commissioned was Zhong Shaojing, whose support to Li Longji was instrumental during the coup. However, Zhong was not from a prominent clan and had been a low level official previously, and this drew resentment from officials from established clans. Xue, who had been made deputy minister of worship (太常少卿, ''Taichang Shaoqing'') and had been in charge of drafting imperial edicts, along with Su Ting, suggested to Zhong that he demonstrate modesty by offering to resign—something often done when high level officials are commissioned and mostly done ceremonially—and when Zhong did, Xue entered the palace and persuaded Emperor Ruizong to accept the resignation. Subsequently, Xue was made ''Zhongshu Shilang'' (中書侍郎), the deputy head of the legislative bureau, given the designation ''Canzhi Zhengshi'' (參知政事), making him a chancellor ''de facto''. Soon, however, he repeatedly argued with another chancellor, Cui Riyong—with Xue accusing Cui of flattering

Wu Sansi Wu Sansi (died August 7, 707), known posthumously as Prince Xuan of Liang (), was a Chinese prince and politician of the Tang and Wu Zhou dynasties. Wu Sansi served as a chancellor and imperial prince during the reign of his aunt, Empress Wu Zetia ...

, and Cui accusing Xue of flattering Zhang Yizhi and Zong Chuke. Emperor Ruizong, tired of their bickering, removed both of them from their chancellor posts, with Xue becoming ''Zuo Sanqi Changshi'' (左散騎常侍), a senior advisor at the examination bureau.

During Emperor Xuanzong's reign

Meanwhile, the government became divided between the parties of Princess Taiping and Li Longji, to whom Emperor Ruizong passed the throne in 712 and who took the throne as Emperor Xuanzong. After Emperor Xuanzong's enthronement, however, his struggles with Princess Taiping continued, as she continued to highly influence politics through Emperor Ruizong, who retained power as ''

Taishang Huang In Chinese history, a Taishang Huang or Taishang Huangdi is an honorific and institution of a retired emperor. The former emperor had, at least in name, abdicated in favor of someone else. Although no longer the reigning sovereign, there are ins ...

'' (retired emperor). By 713, it was said that Princess Taiping, Dou Huaizhen, Cen Xi, Xiao Zhizhong, Cui Shi, Xue; along with other officials Li Jin (李晉) the Prince of Xinxing (a grandson of Li Deliang (李德良), a cousin of Tang's founder Emperor Gaozu), Li You (李猷), Jia Yingfu (賈膺福), Tang Jun (唐晙); the generals Chang Yuankai (常元楷), Li Ci (李慈), and Li Qin (李欽); and the monk Huifan (惠範), were plotting to overthrow Emperor Xuanzong. It was further said that they discussed, with the

lady in waiting A lady-in-waiting (alternatively written lady in waiting) or court lady is a female personal assistant at a court, attending on a royal woman or a high-ranking noblewoman. Historically, in Europe, a lady-in-waiting was often a noblewoman but ...

Lady Yuan, poisoning the '' gastrodia elata'' that Emperor Xuanzong routinely took as an aphrodisiac. When this alleged plot was reported to Emperor Xuanzong by Wei Zhigu, Emperor Xuanzong – who had already received advice from Wang Ju (王琚), Zhang Shuo, and Cui Riyong to act first – did so. He convened a meeting with his brothers Li Fan (李範) the Prince of Qi, Li Ye (李業) the Prince of Xue, Guo Yuanzhen, along with a number of his associates — the general Wang Maozhong (王毛仲), the officials Jiang Jiao (姜皎) and Li Lingwen (李令問), his brother-in-law Wang Shouyi (王守一), the

eunuch A eunuch ( , ) is a male who has been castration, 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 2 ...

Gao Lishi, and the military officer Li Shoude (李守德) — and decided to act first. On July 29, Emperor Xuanzong had Wang Maozhong take 300 soldiers to the imperial guard camp to behead Chang and Li Ci. Then, Jia, Li You, Xiao, and Cen were arrested and executed as well. Dou and Princess Taiping committed suicide. Emperor Ruizong yielded powers to Emperor Xuanzong and no longer actively participated in policy decisions thereafter. Xue was arrested and imprisoned at the jail of Wannian County (萬年, one of the counties making up the capital

Chang'an Chang'an (; zh, t=長安, s=长安, p=Cháng'ān, first=t) is the traditional name of the city now named Xi'an and was the capital of several Chinese dynasties, ranging from 202 BCE to 907 CE. The site has been inhabited since Neolithic time ...

) and ordered to commit suicide. His son Xue Boyang was spared on the basis that he was the emperor's brother-in-law, but was exiled, and he committed suicide in exile.

Notes and 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. 7

* ''

'', vol. 9

* ''

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.

206 Year 206 ( CCVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Umbrius and Gavius (or, less frequently, year 959 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 206 for this y ...

, 209, 210. {{DEFAULTSORT:Xue Ji 649 births 713 deaths 7th-century Chinese calligraphers 7th-century Chinese painters 8th-century Chinese calligraphers 8th-century Chinese painters 8th-century executions by the Tang dynasty Chancellors under Emperor Ruizong of Tang Forced suicides of Chinese people People executed by the Tang dynasty Tang dynasty calligraphers Tang dynasty painters