Yuan Hongsi, from Luoyang, Henan. His grandfather was the King of Yuyang in the Wei Dynasty, and his father was the Duke of Yuyang in the Zhou Dynasty. Hongsi inherited his title at a young age and became the Left Imperial Guard at the age of eighteen. In the ninth year of Kaihuang, he followed the Prince of Jin to fight and pacify the Chen Dynasty and was awarded the title of Shang Yitong for his achievements. In the fourteenth year, he was appointed as the Chief Steward of Guanzhou, where he served in an official capacity. He was known for his strictness, and those under his command held a deep resentment towards him.
In the twentieth year, he was transferred to Youzhou as the Chief Steward. At that time, Yan Rong served as the Chief of Youzhou and often beat and berated him. Hongsi was unhappy with this treatment, so Yan Rong imprisoned him and tried to kill him. Later, Yan Rong was killed, and Hongsi took power, but he was even more ruthless. When interrogating prisoners, he often poured vinegar into their noses or inserted objects into their lower bodies, ensuring they confessed. During the end of the Renshou period, he was appointed as the Chief Carpenter Supervisor, responsible for building the Eastern Capital.
During the early days of the Daye period, Emperor Yang of Sui secretly planned to attack Liaodong and sent Hongsi to Donglai Bay to oversee the shipbuilding operations. The laborers recruited from various states were subjected to brutal whippings by him, and officials forced them to stand in the water day and night, with hardly any rest. Their bodies were infested with maggots on their lower bodies, and thirteen or fourteen people died. Not long after, he was promoted to Yellow Gate Attendant, and later became the Supervisor of the Palace. During the Liaodong campaign, he was promoted to the Grand Master of Splendid Happiness, adorned with the Golden Purple Light.
In the second year, the emperor again launched a campaign against Liaodong. Just then, the Turks were raiding Longyou, so Prince Yang You dispatched men to arrest Hongsi and bring him to the emperor's location. When Xugan rebelled and approached the eastern capital, Hongsi stationed his troops at Anding. Although no evidence of rebellion was found against Hongsi and he should have been released, the emperor remained skeptical and refused to believe him. He stripped Hongsi of his position and exiled him to Rinan, where Hongsi died en route at the age of forty-nine. He had a son named Renguan.
Wang Wentong hailed from Yingyang, a town near the capital. He was clever and capable. During the reign of Sui Emperor Wen, he was appointed as Yitong for his military accomplishments, and soon after became the Sima of Guizhou. After Emperor Yang of Sui ascended the throne, he was summoned to be the Guanglu Shaqing, but after offending the emperor, he was demoted to the position of county magistrate of Hengshan.
There was a particularly arrogant and overbearing man in Hengshan County who constantly found fault with his superiors, and previous magistrates had been unable to manage him. When Wang Wentong took office, he heard about this man's behavior and summoned him for a stern reprimand. Then, he had people cut wood to fashion a large stake, buried it in the courtyard with only about a foot exposed, and buried four small stakes at each corner. He ordered the man to lie on the large stake, bind his limbs to the small stakes, and then beat his back with a stick until it was lacerated. The county's residents were all terrified, and the officials were all too scared to speak up.
Later, Emperor Yang of Sui launched a campaign in Liaodong and ordered Wang Wentong to inspect the various counties in Hebei. When Wang Wentong saw the monks who were vegetable-eating and chanting scriptures, he considered them to be demons and monsters, so he had them all arrested and thrown into prison. In Hejian County, he gathered the local officials, and anyone who arrived slightly late was executed on the spot. He also charged hundreds of monks and elders who gathered to discuss scriptures or participate in Buddhist activities with causing chaos and had them all killed. Furthermore, he stripped all the monks and nuns of their clothes to check for illicit relationships, and upon discovering thousands of cases, he had them all killed. The wails of men, women, and children filled the county, terrifying other counties as well, leading them to report to the court.
Upon hearing this, the Emperor was furious and sent envoy Da Xishanyi to escort Wang Wentong. In Hejian County, Wang Wentong was beheaded in public to calm the people's anger. Wang Wentong's enemies even dug up his coffin, cut his flesh, and devoured it within a short time.
Historical records state: Good governance of a country does not rely on intricate strategies; good politics does not depend on harsh punishments. While a balance of kindness and severity, clear rewards and punishments are crucial, the best governance is one where people obey without the need for severe laws, as valued by wise rulers of the past. Wang Wentong and his ilk lived during the reigns of Emperor Wen and Emperor Yang of Sui, a time when there were no exceptionally wicked and cunning individuals. They lacked moral integrity, harbored cruelty and brutality, treating people like objects, disregarding human life, even worse than how one treats sacrificial animals. They committed numerous atrocities, faced little punishment, and some were executed, while others died in despair. All righteous individuals believed this was divine retribution! Alas! Later scholars and officials, even if they cannot attain high positions and wealth like Zigao, must they also worry about having no one to offer sacrifices at their graves after death when their mothers visit their graves?
