Wang Zhang

Wang Zhang (Chinese: 王章) (died December 24, 950) was an official of the Chinese Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period state Later Han. Wang was one of the key officials that Later Han's founding emperor Liu Zhiyuan (Emperor Gaozu) left in charge of the government during the youth of his son and successor Liu Chengyou (Emperor Yin), but Liu Chengyou eventually tired of these officials' governance and had Wang killed, along with Yang Bin and Shi Hongzhao.

It is not known when Wang Zhang was born, but it is known that he was from Nanle (南樂, in modern Puyang, Henan). In his youth, he served as an administrator at the headquarters of the military governor (Jiedushi) of Tianxiong Circuit (天雄, headquartered in modern Handan, Hebei), which Nanle was a part of. Early in the Tongguang era (923-926) of the Later Tang emperor Li Cunxu, he served for some time at the office of the emperor's chiefs of staff, but later returned to Tianxiong and became the circuit's treasurer. At some point, he married the daughter of the general Bai Wenke (白文珂). He did not have any sons by Lady Bai or anyone else, but did have one daughter.

In 936, during the reign of Later Tang's last emperor Li Congke (Li Cunxu's adoptive nephew), the officer Zhang Lingzhao (張令昭) mutinied at Tianxiong, expelled the military governor Liu Yanhao, and claimed the title of acting military governor. Wang served as the public works officer (in addition to being the treasurer) under Zhang during Zhang's mutiny. Soon, Li Congke sent the general Fan Yanguang to suppress Zhang's mutiny, and Fan quickly captured Tianxiong's capital Wei Prefecture (魏州) and executed Zhang. He also sought to find and execute Zhang's followers. As Bai Wenke was friendly with Fan's deputy Li Zhou (李周), Bai asked Li Zhou to save Wang. Li Zhou thus located and hid Wang, and had him delivered to Li Zhou's mansion at the capital Luoyang in secret and continued to hide him there.

Later in 936, Later Tang was overthrown in a rebellion by the general Shi Jingtang, who established Later Jin and took over Later Tang's territory. Wang became an administrator in the Later Jin imperial government, and later was put in charge of food supplies at the transit city Heyang (河陽, in modern Luoyang, Henan). When the major general Liu Zhiyuan became in charge of the imperial guards, he became Liu's treasurer, and later followed Liu when Liu became the military governor of Hedong Circuit (河東, headquartered in modern Taiyuan, Shanxi) in 941. At Hedong, Wang became in charge of the circuit's financial and food supply matters.

Around the new year 947, Later Jin was destroyed by the Khitan Liao dynasty. Liu Zhiyuan, after initially hesitating, eventually decided to resist, and he declared himself emperor (of a new state later known as Later Han. He made Wang Zhang the acting director of the three financial agencies (taxation, treasury, and salt and iron monopolies). After Liu was able to capture Luoyang and Daliang later in the year (from the Liao troops which were evacuating the region), he made Wang the permanent director of those agencies. At that time, after the Central Plains had been war-ravaged, both the imperial government and the people were impoverished, and the military expenses were high as Liu was merging his Hedong army into the Later Jin imperial troops who remained in the Luoyang-Daliang region. Wang persuaded Liu to cut back on unnecessary expenditures to allow the military to be properly maintained, and was able to make sure that the treasury was not depleted.

Liu Zhiyuan died in early 948, and was succeeded by his young son Liu Chengyou. Liu Chengyou bestowed on Wang Zhang the additional titles of chancellor (同中書門下平章事, Tong Zhongshu Menxia Pingzhangshi) and acting Taiwei (太尉, one of the Three Excellencies). At that time, the Later Han imperial government was facing the threat posed by rebellions at three different circuits — Huguo (護國, headquartered in modern Yuncheng, Shanxi), Fengxiang (鳳翔, headquartered in modern Baoji, Shaanxi), and Yongxing (永興, headquartered in modern Xi'an, Shaanxi). It was said that Wang capably managed the imperial government's finances such that the military operations against the three circuits (overseen by Guo Wei) did not lack anything, and that even after the campaign, the treasury was not depleted. It was said that the imperial government was well run at that time, with Yang Bin overseeing the imperial government, Guo overseeing the military matters, Shi Hongzhao overseeing the imperial guards, and Wang overseeing the financial matters.

However, there was also a dark side to Wang's financial management style and governance. It was said that he exercised his authorities harshly and extracted much from the people, causing the people to resent the imperial government. Under prior dynasties, taxes that the people paid in grain required that the people pay 20% surcharge in addition to the assessed tax amount, known as the "bird and mouse surcharge" (i.e., to account for the amount that would be eaten by birds and mice). Wang imposed an additional 20% surcharge, known as the "agency surcharge," greatly increasing the people's tax burden. Further, previously, whatever payments that imperial treasury made were made at a discount rate, paying 80% of what the nominal amount was. Wang decreased that rate to 77%. Further, Wang carried out frequent reassessments of the field values to increase the tax assessments, such that just after a few years of Wang's administration of these matters, the people were weary from these taxes. Both Wang and Yang, with whom Wang was particularly close because they were both from Tianxiong, disliked the learned people, such that, for supplies given as civilian officials' salaries, they gave second-grade supplies that were considered not military-grade material, referring to such materials as "items of miscellany" and giving them overly high assessed values. Further, he was harsh to those who violated the law, such that people who violated the laws on state monopolies over salt and alcohol were often executed even for very minor violations. The administrators under him manipulated his harshness to be even harsher, such that the people suffered greatly.

In 950, the relationship between the leading officials was showing signs of fracture. They had discussed and resolved that, because of frequent Liao incursions and the inability for the circuits to coordinate their defenses, Guo should be sent to Yedu (鄴都, i.e., Wei Prefecture) to serve as its defender (as well as the military governor of Tianxiong) to coordinate the defense against Liao. Shi advocated that Guo be allowed to continue to retain his title as chief of staff to allow him to give orders to the military governors. The chancellor Su Fengji opposed, pointing out that there had been no precedent to allow a military governor to continue to retain chief of staff title. Eventually, Liu Chengyou approved Shi's proposal. When Shi then complained to Su about his opposition, Su responded, "Letting the central government control the outlying circuits is proper. How can it be that now you are letting an outlying circuit control the central government?"