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Yao Chong
Yao Chong (Chinese: 姚崇; pinyin: Yáo Chóng; 650 – September 28, 721), born Yao Yuanchong (姚元崇), known 700s–713 by the courtesy name Yuanzhi (元之), posthumous name Duke Wenxian of Liang (梁文獻公), was an official of the China's Tang and Wu Zhou dynasties, serving as chancellor under four sovereigns—Wu Zetian, her sons Emperor Zhongzong and Emperor Ruizong, and her grandson Emperor Xuanzong. After his resignation in 716, he still had great influence inside the imperial government, and his opinions often influenced the decisions of Emperor Xuanzong and the succeeding chancellors.
Yao Chong was born in 650, during the reign of Emperor Gaozong. His father Yao Shanyi (姚善意) served Emperor Gaozong's father Emperor Taizong as the commandant at Xi Prefecture (巂州, roughly modern Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan).
Yao Chong himself started his civil service career serving as an attendant to Emperor Gaozong's son and crown prince Li Hong, and was known for being able to write quickly. He later served as the food supply officer at Pu Prefecture (濮州, roughly modern Heze, Shandong). He was then moved in his office five times and eventually became Xiaguan Langzhong (夏官郎中), a low-level official at the ministry of defense.
During the Khitan invasion of 696–697, Yao Chong was serving at the ministry of defense, when there was much emergency paperwork due to the Khitan invasion. Yao conducted the official business with efficiency and gave much useful comments when he processed the paperwork. This impressed Emperor Gaozong's wife Wu Zetian, then "emperor" (the only woman with that title in Chinese history) of her Zhou dynasty, and she gave him an unusually steep promotion to be the deputy minister of defense (夏官侍郎, Xiaguan Shilang).
In 697, after Wu Zetian's secret police official Lai Junchen, who had been responsible for falsely implicating many officials in treason accusations and executing them, was himself executed, Wu Zetian made a comment that after Lai's death, she had not heard of any accusations of treason. Yao pointed out that Lai, along with other secret police officials, had been making false accusations, and that he believed that in the future there would not be any treason accusations at all. Pleased with Yao's comment, she awarded him money.
In 698, Wu Zetian gave Yao the designation Tong Fengge Luantai Pingzhangshi (同鳳閣鸞臺平章事), making him a chancellor de facto, probably at the recommendation of the senior chancellor Di Renjie.
In 702, Wu Zetian considered launching a campaign against Eastern Tujue, and she put her son Li Dan the Prince of Xiang in command of the army, assisted by her family members Wu Sansi the Prince of Liang, Wu Youning the Prince of Jianchang, and the chancellor Wei Yuanzhong. Yao Yuanchong was to serve as secretary general for Li Dan on this campaign, but eventually the campaign was not launched. Around this time, there was an ethnic Tujue chieftain named Zhali Yuanchong (吒利元崇) who rebelled against Zhou. Wu Zetian did not want Yao to share a name with Zhali, and therefore had him use his courtesy name of Yuanzhi.
In 704, Yao, who was by that point Fengge Shilang (鳳閣侍郎), the deputy head of the legislative bureau of government (鳳閣, Fengge), citing the fact that his mother was old, requested to be relieved of his office so that he could attend to his mother. In summer 704, Wu Zetian made him Li Dan's secretary general, but allowed him to have the salary and prestige as officials of the third rank (i.e., chancellors—while the secretary general for an imperial prince was only ordinarily fourth rank, second division, first class). Less than a month later, she made him also the minister of defense (夏官尚書, Xiaguan Shangshu) and chancellor de facto again, with the greater designation of Tong Fengge Luantai Sanpin (同鳳閣鸞臺三品). However, he declined the post of minister of defense, explaining that while he was serving Li Dan, for him to be in command of the army would hurt Li Dan (i.e., possibly bring suspicions on Li Dan). Therefore, Wu Zetian instead made him the minister of rites (春官尚書, Chunguan Shangshu). Around this time, Wu Zetian's lover Zhang Yizhi wanted to move 10 senior Buddhist monks from the capital Luoyang to a temple that he had built in Ding Prefecture (定州, roughly modern Baoding, Hebei). These monks did not wish to go and petitioned Yao, who ruled that the monks did not have to go, despite repeated requests by Zhang. Zhang therefore spoke to Wu Zetian against Yao, and Yao was demoted to be the minister of husbandry (司僕卿, Sipu Qing), although he remained chancellor. Soon, Wu Zetian, while letting Yao remain chancellor, made him the commanding general of the army at Lingwu, apparently again contemplating a campaign against Eastern Tujue. Before Yao departed for Lingwu, Wu Zetian met him personally and asked him to recommend someone who is suitable for being chancellor, and Yao recommended Zhang Jianzhi. She then made Zhang Jianzhi chancellor.
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Yao Chong
Yao Chong (Chinese: 姚崇; pinyin: Yáo Chóng; 650 – September 28, 721), born Yao Yuanchong (姚元崇), known 700s–713 by the courtesy name Yuanzhi (元之), posthumous name Duke Wenxian of Liang (梁文獻公), was an official of the China's Tang and Wu Zhou dynasties, serving as chancellor under four sovereigns—Wu Zetian, her sons Emperor Zhongzong and Emperor Ruizong, and her grandson Emperor Xuanzong. After his resignation in 716, he still had great influence inside the imperial government, and his opinions often influenced the decisions of Emperor Xuanzong and the succeeding chancellors.
Yao Chong was born in 650, during the reign of Emperor Gaozong. His father Yao Shanyi (姚善意) served Emperor Gaozong's father Emperor Taizong as the commandant at Xi Prefecture (巂州, roughly modern Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan).
Yao Chong himself started his civil service career serving as an attendant to Emperor Gaozong's son and crown prince Li Hong, and was known for being able to write quickly. He later served as the food supply officer at Pu Prefecture (濮州, roughly modern Heze, Shandong). He was then moved in his office five times and eventually became Xiaguan Langzhong (夏官郎中), a low-level official at the ministry of defense.
During the Khitan invasion of 696–697, Yao Chong was serving at the ministry of defense, when there was much emergency paperwork due to the Khitan invasion. Yao conducted the official business with efficiency and gave much useful comments when he processed the paperwork. This impressed Emperor Gaozong's wife Wu Zetian, then "emperor" (the only woman with that title in Chinese history) of her Zhou dynasty, and she gave him an unusually steep promotion to be the deputy minister of defense (夏官侍郎, Xiaguan Shilang).
In 697, after Wu Zetian's secret police official Lai Junchen, who had been responsible for falsely implicating many officials in treason accusations and executing them, was himself executed, Wu Zetian made a comment that after Lai's death, she had not heard of any accusations of treason. Yao pointed out that Lai, along with other secret police officials, had been making false accusations, and that he believed that in the future there would not be any treason accusations at all. Pleased with Yao's comment, she awarded him money.
In 698, Wu Zetian gave Yao the designation Tong Fengge Luantai Pingzhangshi (同鳳閣鸞臺平章事), making him a chancellor de facto, probably at the recommendation of the senior chancellor Di Renjie.
In 702, Wu Zetian considered launching a campaign against Eastern Tujue, and she put her son Li Dan the Prince of Xiang in command of the army, assisted by her family members Wu Sansi the Prince of Liang, Wu Youning the Prince of Jianchang, and the chancellor Wei Yuanzhong. Yao Yuanchong was to serve as secretary general for Li Dan on this campaign, but eventually the campaign was not launched. Around this time, there was an ethnic Tujue chieftain named Zhali Yuanchong (吒利元崇) who rebelled against Zhou. Wu Zetian did not want Yao to share a name with Zhali, and therefore had him use his courtesy name of Yuanzhi.
In 704, Yao, who was by that point Fengge Shilang (鳳閣侍郎), the deputy head of the legislative bureau of government (鳳閣, Fengge), citing the fact that his mother was old, requested to be relieved of his office so that he could attend to his mother. In summer 704, Wu Zetian made him Li Dan's secretary general, but allowed him to have the salary and prestige as officials of the third rank (i.e., chancellors—while the secretary general for an imperial prince was only ordinarily fourth rank, second division, first class). Less than a month later, she made him also the minister of defense (夏官尚書, Xiaguan Shangshu) and chancellor de facto again, with the greater designation of Tong Fengge Luantai Sanpin (同鳳閣鸞臺三品). However, he declined the post of minister of defense, explaining that while he was serving Li Dan, for him to be in command of the army would hurt Li Dan (i.e., possibly bring suspicions on Li Dan). Therefore, Wu Zetian instead made him the minister of rites (春官尚書, Chunguan Shangshu). Around this time, Wu Zetian's lover Zhang Yizhi wanted to move 10 senior Buddhist monks from the capital Luoyang to a temple that he had built in Ding Prefecture (定州, roughly modern Baoding, Hebei). These monks did not wish to go and petitioned Yao, who ruled that the monks did not have to go, despite repeated requests by Zhang. Zhang therefore spoke to Wu Zetian against Yao, and Yao was demoted to be the minister of husbandry (司僕卿, Sipu Qing), although he remained chancellor. Soon, Wu Zetian, while letting Yao remain chancellor, made him the commanding general of the army at Lingwu, apparently again contemplating a campaign against Eastern Tujue. Before Yao departed for Lingwu, Wu Zetian met him personally and asked him to recommend someone who is suitable for being chancellor, and Yao recommended Zhang Jianzhi. She then made Zhang Jianzhi chancellor.
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