Tian Shu is from the city of Jing in the state of Zhao. His ancestors were descendants of the Tian family from the state of Qi. Tian Shu had a particular fondness for swords and studied Huang-Lao Daoism with Yue Jugu. He was very hardworking and honest, content with his life, and enjoyed socializing with important officials. Zhao Wu recommended him to King Zhao Zhang Ao, who appointed him as a low-ranking official at court. Over the years, Tian Shu was fair and honest in his work, and King Zhao valued him highly but hadn't yet promoted him.
At that time, in the seventh year of the Han Dynasty, Chen Xi rebelled in Dai. Emperor Gaozu personally led the expedition and passed through Zhao. King Zhao Zhang Ao served Liu Bang with a tray of dishes, showing great courtesy, but Liu Bang insulted him, lounging with his legs sprawled out. This angered Zhao Wu and several others, who suggested rebelling against Liu Bang. King Zhao bit his finger and said, "Our ancestors lost the country. Without the emperor, we'd be nothing now! How can you say such things? Stop it!" Guan Gao and his associates praised the king's virtue, saying, "The king is truly a wise man who does not change his principles." However, they secretly conspired to kill the emperor. When the plot was uncovered, the Han emperor ordered the arrest of King Zhao and all the ministers involved in the rebellion. Zhao Wu and others committed suicide; only Guan Gao was captured. Word came down from the Han emperor: "Whoever dares to rebel with King Zhao in the state of Zhao will be punished along with their families for three generations!" Only Meng Shu, Tian Shu, and a dozen others shaved their heads, donned prison garb, and submitted to shackles, presenting themselves as servants of King Zhao Zhang Ao as they followed him to Chang'an.
They sorted out the Guan Gao mess, and King Zhao Zhang Ao was also released and demoted to the Marquis of Xuanping. He then recommended a dozen or so people to the emperor, who summoned them all for a conversation. The officials of the Han Dynasty couldn't compare to them, and the emperor was very pleased, so he appointed them all as county governors and high officials. Tian Shu served as the governor of Hanzhong for more than ten years. When the Empress Dowager Lü died, the Lü clan revolted, and the court officials wiped them out and put Emperor Xiao Wen on the throne.
After he became emperor, he asked Tian Shu, "Do you know who can be considered a true great man in the world?" Tian Shu replied, "How would I know?" The emperor said, "You're the one; you should know." Tian Shu quickly kowtowed and said, "Meng Shu, Yunzhong's governor—*he's* the real great man!"
At that time, the Xiongnu launched a massive raid on the border, and Yunzhong County suffered the most. Meng Shu was dismissed because of this. Emperor Xiaowen said, "The former emperor let Meng Shu govern Yunzhong County for more than ten years. Every time the Xiongnu invaded, Meng Shu failed to hold on, leading to the deaths of hundreds of soldiers. Shouldn't a true hero avoid letting people die in vain? How can you say Meng Shu is a true hero?" Tian Shu prostrated himself and replied, "That’s exactly why Meng Shu became a true hero! When Guan Gao and others rebelled, the court issued a severe decree that anyone in Zhao who dared to follow Zhang Ao would be punished along with their families. But Meng Shu voluntarily shaved his head, wore shackles, and followed Zhang Ao, wanting to die with him. He'd completely forgotten he was the governor of Yunzhong County! Years of fighting the Chu had left the Han soldiers bone-tired. Modun, the Xiongnu Chanyu, had just conquered the Northern Yi and came to harass the border. Meng Shu knew that the soldiers were exhausted and couldn't stand to let them go to the battlefield again. The soldiers, however, rushed to the city wall to resist the enemy, like sons protecting their fathers, which led to the deaths of hundreds of people. How could Meng Shu deliberately force them to die? This is the reason why Meng Shu became a true hero!" After listening, Emperor Xiaowen said, "Meng Shu is truly a talented person!" So he reappointed Meng Shu as the governor of Yunzhong County.
After a few years, Tian lost his job for breaking the law. King Xiaowang of Liang sent someone to kill the former Prime Minister of Wu, Yuan Ang. Emperor Jing ordered Tian to investigate King Xiaowang and report back after uncovering the truth. "Did King Xiaowang really do this?" the Emperor asked. "It's a capital offense! He did it," Tian replied. "What exactly happened?" the Emperor pressed. "Your Majesty, don't pin this on King Xiaowang," Tian said. "Why?" the Emperor inquired. "If King Liang gets away with it, the law's a joke; if he's punished, the Empress Dowager'll be beside herself, and that'll worry you sick." Emperor Jing greatly appreciated Tian's abilities and appointed him as the Prime Minister of Lu.
When he took the job, over a hundred people came to accuse King Lu of seizing their property. Tian caught the ringleaders, giving them fifty lashes, while the rest received twenty each. He then scolded them, "King Lu's not your boss! Who do you think you are?!" King Lu was mortified upon hearing this and used the treasury money to compensate the people. Tian said, "Look, the King stole the money, and now you're expected to pay it back? That's not right. The King needs to pay them back himself." As a result, King Lu personally compensated all the people.
King Lu enjoyed hunting, and the Prime Minister often accompanied him to the hunting grounds. King Lu always asked the Prime Minister to rest in the pavilion, but the Prime Minister insisted on sitting outside, waiting for King Lu to return. Despite several requests from King Lu to rest inside, the Prime Minister refused, saying, "You're out here in the sun and rain, Your Majesty. I can't just sit comfy in the pavilion!" Because of this, King Lu rarely went out hunting afterwards.
After several years, Tian Shu died in office, and King Lu offered a hundred gold in his honor. However, Tian Shu's young son, Tian Ren, did not accept it, saying, "I cannot use a hundred gold to tarnish my father's name." Tian Ren, because of his strong physique, was appointed as the Guard General's aide and accompanied the Guard General on several expeditions against the Xiongnu. The Guard General recommended Tian Ren to the Emperor, and Tian Ren was promoted to Chief Minister's Secretary. Several years later, he was promoted to the position of Prime Minister's Chief Historian, but later lost his official position for some reason. He was then sent to scout talent in the Sanhe region. When the Emperor made an eastern tour, Tian Ren's memorial was well-worded, which pleased the Emperor, and he appointed Tian Ren as the Capital Assistant Commandant. One month later, the Emperor promoted him to the position of Sizhi. Several years later, Tian Ren was caught up in the Crown Prince's troubles. At that time, the Left Prime Minister personally led troops and ordered Sizhi Tian Ren to guard the city gate, and because he was seen as protecting the Crown Prince, Tian Ren was imprisoned and executed. Tian Ren rebelled, and the Changling magistrate, Che Qianqiu, reported Tian Ren to the court, leading to the execution of Tian Ren and his family. The ruins of Xingcheng still exist in the State of Zhongshan.
Sima Qian said: Confucius once said, "If you live in a country, you'll hear its gossip," and that certainly applies to Tian Shu! Loyalty and righteousness do not forget virtuous deeds, and the virtues of a wise ruler can make up for mistakes. Tian Ren was a friend of mine, so I narrated their stories together. And so ends the story of Tian Shu and Tian Ren, a testament to both loyalty and the fickle nature of power.
Mr. Chu said: When I was a minor official, I heard that Tian Ren and Ren An had a very good relationship. Ren An is from Xingyang. When he was young, he came to Chang'an working as a carriage driver due to his poor family background. He stayed to find work, did some small official jobs, and never caught a break. He relied on fortune-telling to make a living. Wugong is a small county on the west side of Fufeng County, located at the mouth of a valley, near the mountains of the Shu Road. Ren An thought that Wugong County was remote, without powerful families, and easy to stand out, so he stayed there and sought a minor post at a waystation for others. Later, he became the pavilion head. When the people of the county went hunting together, Ren An always helped distribute the game, such as roe deer, pheasants, and rabbits, and arranged for the elderly, weak, women, and children to go to easier places, which made everyone very happy, saying, "Don't worry, Ren An's got this; he's a smart cookie." The next day, hundreds of people gathered again. Ren An asked, "Why didn't so-and-so come?" Everyone was surprised at his good memory. Later, he was promoted to be one of the three elders in the county, recommended for his love for the people like his own children, and became a county magistrate with a salary of 300 stones (a unit of salary in ancient China), governing the people. Later, he was dismissed from office because the emperor's camp wasn't ready when he showed up.
The two guys who worked for General Wei, Tian Ren and Ren An, lived under the same roof and had a deep bond. Both of them were very poor, unable to bribe the stewards in the general's mansion, so the stewards deliberately made things difficult for them, making them feed the dirty and fierce horses. The two slept in the same bed, and Tian Ren quietly said, "This steward is a real jerk!" Ren An replied, "If even the General's clueless, what do you expect from his flunky?"
Later, General Wei took them to Princess Pingyang's mansion, where they were asked to dine with the servants. As a result, the two men pulled out their swords and sliced the bench in two, finding another place to sit. The people in the princess's mansion were frightened and dared not say anything to them.
Later, the court ordered the selection of officials from the attendants of General Wei. General Wei selected several attendants from wealthy families, provided them with horses, red clothes, jade ornaments, and swords, preparing to recommend them to the emperor. At this time, the astute official Zhao Yu came to visit General Wei, and General Wei had the selected attendants be interviewed by Zhao Yu. Zhao Yu asked them one by one, and out of the dozens of attendants, none had experience or strategy. Zhao Yu said, "I have heard that there must be brave generals among the descendants of noble families. As the saying goes, 'If you do not know the lord, look at his ministers; if you do not know the son, look at his friends.' Now the court wants to select talents from the general's attendants to see if the general can select outstanding talents who are both civil and martial. However, you have only selected the sons of wealthy families, and they have no talent. It's like dressing up puppets in fine clothes. What should we do?" So Zhao Yu called all of General Wei's more than one hundred attendants and interviewed them one by one, finally selecting Tian Ren and Ren An, saying, "Only these two are suitable; the rest are not." General Wei was not pleased to see that these two came from poor backgrounds. After Zhao Yu left, General Wei told Tian Ren and Ren An, "Prepare your own horses and new red clothes." The two replied, "Our families are poor and we do not have these things." The general snapped, "Your poverty is your problem. Why are you bringing this up? Think I'm playing favorites and trying to get out of this?" The general had no choice but to report this matter to the court. The court ordered the attendants of General Wei to be summoned, and Tian Ren and Ren An were called in. The emperor asked them what talents they had, and both men modestly downplayed their abilities. Tian Ren said, "Boosting morale at the camp gate, inspiring soldiers to fight bravely, I am not as good as Ren An in this aspect." Ren An said, "Solving tough problems, keeping order, and making sure the people are happy, I am not as good as Tian Ren in this aspect." Emperor Wu laughed heartily and appointed Ren An as the guardian of the Northern Army and Tian Ren as the manager of the fields and valleys along the river. And that's how Tian Ren and Ren An became famous.
Later, Ren An was appointed as the governor of Yizhou, and Tian Ren was appointed as the Chancellor's Secretary. Tian Ren wrote a memorial saying: "Many governors in various regions of the country are taking bribes and abusing their power, especially in the Sanhe area, which refers to the three prefectures of Henan, Henei, and Hedong. I request to first impeach the governors of Sanhe. These governors are all related to powerful officials in the court and have connections with the three public officials of the court. They are not afraid of trouble at all. We should first rectify Sanhe to warn all the corrupt officials in the world." At that time, the governors of Henan and Henei were brothers of the Grand Master of the Imperial Secretariat, Du Fu, and the governor of Hedong was a descendant of Prime Minister Shi. At that time, there were nine officials from the Shi family holding high-ranking positions with salaries of two thousand stones, and their power was flourishing. Tian Ren repeatedly wrote memorials to address this issue. Du Fu and the Shi family sent people to apologize to Tian Ren, pleading, "We're begging you, don't falsely accuse us." Tian Ren had already impeached the governors of Sanhe, and those governors were all arrested and executed. Tian Ren returned to report his work, and Emperor Wu was very pleased, believing that Tian Ren could stand up to the powerful, so he appointed him as the Inspector General, and his reputation shook the world. Later, the crown prince was involved in some military maneuvers, and the prime minister personally led the troops, while the Inspector General was responsible for guarding the city gates. The Inspector General felt that the crown prince was a relative of his own blood, and it wasn't proper for a father and son to be so close, so he ran away to the side of the imperial tomb. At this time, Emperor Wu was in Ganquan Palace, and he sent the Grand Master of the Imperial Secretariat to question the prime minister: "Why'd you let the prince get away with it?" The prime minister replied, "I asked the Inspector General to guard the city gates, but he let the crown prince go." This matter was reported to Emperor Wu, who ordered the arrest of the Inspector General, who was also executed.
At that time, Ren An served as the commander of the Northern Army's guard, and the Crown Prince pulled up in his carriage outside the south gate of the Northern Army, summoned Ren An, and gave him orders to mobilize troops. Ren An accepted the orders, but once inside, he did not come out. When Emperor Wu heard about this, he believed that Ren An was waiting to see how the situation unfolded and was not actively carrying out his duties. What was his intention? Ren An also beat a minor official of the Northern Army, the quartermaster, who then filed a complaint, stating that Ren An had accepted the Crown Prince's orders and even said, "I hope to share in the spoils." The memorial was sent to Emperor Wu, who said, "This wily veteran is just waiting to see military action unfold, wanting to see who wins so he can join them. I don't trust him. Ren An has committed many capital offenses, and I have pardoned him before, but now he is scheming and is disloyal." So, he ordered the arrest of Ren An, who was then executed.
When the moon is full, it wanes; when things are at their peak, they decline. That's just how things are. Those who only know how to advance but not retreat, who have long enjoyed wealth and prosperity, will eventually face calamity. Therefore, when Fan Li left Yue, he refused official positions, and his name has been passed down through the ages, never to be forgotten. How can one compare to him? Let that be a lesson to us all!
