Good Works Translation from the Wuhuan and Xianbei Biography

This Good Works Translation renders the Wuhuan and Xianbei biography in Fan Ye's Hou Han Shu from Classical Chinese into English.

For the Scythian shelf, the chapter is eastern frontier evidence. It preserves Han memory of northeastern pastoral custom, mounted warfare, Wuhuan settlement and service, Xianbei expansion after the northern Xiongnu collapse, Tanshihuai's confederation, and Cai Yong's argument against an overconfident expedition.

The Classical Chinese source text is printed below the translation.

Translation

The Wuhuan were originally Eastern Hu. At the beginning of Han, Maodun of the Xiongnu destroyed their state. The remaining kinds protected themselves at Mount Wuhuan and took their name from it. Their custom was to be good at riding and shooting, and their business was shooting birds and hunting beasts. They followed water and pasture in grazing their herds and had no fixed dwelling. They used domed tents as houses, opened to the east toward the sun. They ate meat, drank milk, and used hair and felt for clothing.

They valued the young and slighted the old, and their nature was fierce and obstructive. When angry they killed fathers and elder brothers, but in the end did not harm their mothers, because the mother had a clan and kindred, while the father and elder brothers had no corresponding avengers. Those who were brave, strong, and able to settle fights and lawsuits were promoted as great men; no hereditary estate was passed on. Each settlement had small leaders, and several hundred or thousand settlements formed a division. When a great man summoned them, he cut wood as a tally of trust; although there was no writing, the people of the divisions did not dare violate it. Clan surnames were not fixed; the personal name of a strong great man was made surname. From the great men downward, each group pastured and managed its own property and did not put the others into corvee service.

In marriage, the man first seized the woman and established relations. Sometimes after half a year or a hundred days he then sent cattle, horses, sheep, and livestock as betrothal goods. The son-in-law followed his wife back to her house. In the wife's household, without distinction of noble and base, he bowed morning by morning, but did not bow to his own father and mother. He served the wife's family as laborer for one or two years. Then the wife's family sent the woman away richly, and everything for residence, property, and goods was prepared for them. By their custom a man married a stepmother and took a widowed sister-in-law in return; when she died she returned to her former husband. In planning and counsel they followed and used women. Only in matters of battle and war did they decide by themselves. Fathers, sons, men, and women squatted facing one another. They cut the hair short, considering it light and convenient. When women reached marriage age they grew their hair, divided it into knots, wore hooked ornaments, and decorated them with gold and blue stones, rather like the headcloth and swaying ornaments of China. Women could stitch leather and make embroidered designs, and weave rugs and coarse woolens. Men could make bows, arrows, saddles, and bridles, and forge gold and iron into weapons. Their land was suitable for panicled millet and dongqiang. Dongqiang resembles the peng plant, its seed is like panicled millet, and it ripens in the tenth month. They distinguished the four seasons by seeing when birds and beasts conceived and nursed.

By custom they valued death in arms. They collected the body in a coffin, with grief and weeping; when it came to burial they sent it off with song and dance. They fattened and raised one dog, led it with a colored cord, and took the horse, clothing, and goods ridden or used by the dead person. All were burned and sent with him. They said these things were entrusted to the dog, so that it would guard the dead person's spirit and return to Red Mountain. Red Mountain was several thousand li northwest of Liaodong, like Mount Tai in China, to which the souls and spirits of the dead return. They revered ghosts and spirits and sacrificed to Heaven, Earth, sun, moon, stars, mountains, rivers, and former great men with strong reputations. They used cattle and sheep for sacrifice, and when finished burned them all.

Their legal agreements were these: one who violated the great man's words could be punished by death. If people harmed and killed one another, the divisions were ordered to avenge one another. If it did not stop, they went to the great man and reported it, and he allowed horses, cattle, and sheep to be given to redeem death. If a man killed his own father or elder brother there was no crime. If a fugitive or rebel was caught by the great man, the settlements could not receive him; all were moved and expelled to the land of Yongkuang in the desert. That land had many vipers and lay southwest of Dingling and northeast of Wusun.

After the Wuhuan were broken by Maodun, their people became isolated and weak. They regularly submitted as ministers to the Xiongnu, yearly sending cattle, horses, sheep, and hides. If the goods were late and incomplete, the Xiongnu confiscated their wives and children. When Emperor Wu sent Huo Qubing, general of swift cavalry, to strike and break the Xiongnu left lands, he then moved the Wuhuan beyond the frontiers of the five commanderies Shanggu, Yuyang, Right Beiping, Liaoxi, and Liaodong, so that they could scout and observe the Xiongnu's movements for Han. Their great men came to court once each year. Then the office of colonel protector of the Wuhuan was first established, with rank of two-thousand-stone, holding credentials and supervising them, so that they could not communicate with the Xiongnu.

In Emperor Zhao's time the Wuhuan gradually became strong. They opened the tombs and graves of the Xiongnu shanyu to repay their resentment against Maodun. The Xiongnu were greatly angry and went east to attack and break the Wuhuan. When Huo Guang, the great general, heard of this, he sent Fan Mingyou, general crossing the Liao, with twenty thousand cavalry out from Liaodong to intercept the Xiongnu, but the enemy had already withdrawn. Mingyou took advantage of the Wuhuan's fresh defeat, advanced, struck them, cut off more than six thousand heads, captured the heads of three of their kings, and returned. From this the Wuhuan again raided You province, and Mingyou repeatedly broke them. In Emperor Xuan's time they gradually protected the frontier and surrendered.

When Wang Mang usurped the throne, he wished to strike the Xiongnu and raised twelve divisional armies. He made Yan You, general of the eastern region, lead Wuhuan and Dingling troops to garrison Dai commandery, and held all their wives and children as hostages in the commanderies and counties. The Wuhuan were not comfortable with the water and soil, feared that the garrisoning would last long without release, and repeatedly requested an audience to leave. Mang would not send them away. They then fled and rebelled on their own, returned to raiding and banditry, and the commanderies killed all their hostages. From this they formed resentment against Mang. The Xiongnu then enticed their leaders and made them officers; the rest were loosely held and attached to them.

At the beginning of Guangwu's reign, the Wuhuan joined troops with the Xiongnu as raiders, and the area east of Dai commandery especially suffered their harm. They lived close to the frontier. In the morning they set out from their domed tents; by evening they arrived at the cities. The common people of the five commanderies, every household, suffered their wrongdoing, to the point that commanderies and counties were damaged and the people fled. Those beyond the frontier at White Mountain in Shanggu were the strongest and richest.

In the twenty-first Jianwu year, Ma Yuan, general of wave-quelling, was sent with three thousand cavalry out through Wuruan Pass to make a surprise attack. The Wuhuan knew this beforehand and all fled together. Ma Yuan pursued, cut off a hundred heads, and returned. The Wuhuan then attacked the rear of Yuan's force. Yuan ran back by morning and night. By the time he entered the frontier, more than a thousand horses had died.

In the twenty-second year the Xiongnu state was in disorder. The Wuhuan took advantage of their weakness and attacked and broke them. The Xiongnu shifted north by several thousand li, and the land south of the desert was empty. The emperor therefore used goods and silk to gift the Wuhuan. In the twenty-fifth year, Haodan and other great men of the Liaoxi Wuhuan, nine hundred twenty-two people, led their followers toward transformation, came to the palace gate with court tribute, and presented slaves, cattle, horses, bows, and hides of tiger, leopard, and sable.

At this time the four Yi came in an unbroken line to offer court congratulations. The Son of Heaven therefore ordered a great assembly, labored and feasted them, and gave them precious things. Some Wuhuan wished to remain as lodging guards. Therefore eighty-one of their leaders were enfeoffed as marquises, kings, lords, and chiefs. All lived inside the frontier and were distributed among the border commanderies. They were ordered to summon those of their kind, were supplied with clothing and food, and then served as Han scouts and watchers, assisting attacks against the Xiongnu and Xianbei.

At that time Ban Biao, aide to the minister over the masses, reported: "The Wuhuan are light and cunning by Heaven-given nature and enjoy becoming raiders and bandits. If they are long let loose without overall command, they will surely again invade and plunder the settled people. If they are merely entrusted to aides and clerks in charge of surrenderers, I fear these will not be able to control them. In my foolish opinion, it is right to restore the Wuhuan colonel; it would truly benefit attachment and gathering and reduce the state's border worries." The emperor followed this. The colonel was then first restored at Ningcheng in Shanggu, an encampment office was opened, and it also commanded the Xianbei. Hostage sons were rewarded, and at the proper seasons markets were exchanged.

During the three reigns of Ming, Zhang, and He, they protected the frontier and there was no affair. In the summer of the third Yongchu year of Emperor An, the Wuhuan of Yuyang and more than a thousand Hu of Right Beiping raided Dai commandery and Shanggu. In autumn, Wuhe Yun, a king leading the Wuhuan of Yanmen, with Qiulun and other Xianbei great men and a Guduhou of the southern Xiongnu, combined seven thousand cavalry and raided Wuyuan. They fought the administrator at Gaoqu Valley in Jiuyuan, and Han troops were greatly defeated; the commandery's senior officers were killed. He Xi, general of chariots and cavalry, and Liang Jin, general crossing the Liao, were sent to strike them and greatly defeated them. Wuhe begged surrender, and the Xianbei ran back beyond the frontier. After this the Wuhuan again gradually became close and attached, and their great man Rong Zhugui was appointed commandant close to Han.

In the winter of the fourth Yangjia year of Emperor Shun, the Wuhuan raided Yunzhong and intercepted more than a thousand merchants' carts and oxen on the road. Geng Ye, general crossing the Liao, led more than two thousand men to pursue and strike them, but it did not go well. He fought again south of the desert and cut off five hundred heads. The Wuhuan then surrounded Ye at Lanchi city. Two thousand skilled archers and one thousand men from the Liao-crossing camp were raised and assigned to garrison Shang commandery in order to punish the Wuhuan, and the Wuhuan withdrew. In the fifth Yonghe year, Ajian, Qiangqu, and other Wuhuan great men rebelled with Julong Wusi of the left division of the southern Xiongnu. Zhang Dan, palace gentleman general, struck, broke, and beheaded them, and the remaining people all surrendered. In the Yongshou period of Emperor Huan, the Shuofang Wuhuan and the Xiuzhu Tuge both rebelled, and Zhang Huan, palace gentleman general, subdued them. In the summer of the ninth Yanxi year, the Wuhuan again rebelled together with the Xianbei and southern Xiongnu Xianbei and raided the nine border commanderies. Zhang Huan punished them, and all went out beyond the frontier.

At the beginning of Emperor Ling's reign, among the Wuhuan great men there was Nanlou of Shanggu, with more than nine thousand settlements; Qiuliju in Liaoxi, with more than five thousand settlements; Supuyan in Liaodong, with more than a thousand settlements, calling himself Qiao king; and Wuyan in Right Beiping, with more than eight hundred settlements, calling himself Hanlu king. All were brave, resolute, and full of plans. In the fourth Zhongping year, Zhang Chun, former administrator of Zhongshan, rebelled and entered Qiuliju's people, calling himself King Mitian Anding. He then became commander of the Wuhuan of the commanderies and raided and plundered Qing, Xu, You, and Ji provinces. In the fifth year Liu Yu was made governor of You province. Yu offered rewards for Zhang Chun's head, and the northern province was settled.

In the Chuping period of Emperor Xian, Qiuliju died. His son Louban was young; Tadun, his elder brother's son, had military strategy and took his place, overseeing the three commanderies. All the people obeyed his orders. At the beginning of Jian'an, Yuan Shao, governor of Ji province, and Gongsun Zan, former general, were locked in stalemate. Tadun sent envoys to Shao seeking marriage alliance and peace and then sent troops to assist in attacking Zan, breaking him. Shao falsely issued imperial authority and granted Tadun, Nanlou, Supuyan, Wuyan, and the others shanyu seals and ribbons. Later Nanlou and Supuyan led their people and presented Louban as shanyu, with Tadun as king; yet Tadun still held the plans.

Yan Rou of Guangyang had in youth been taken among the Wuhuan and Xianbei and was trusted by those peoples. Rou then used Xianbei forces to kill Xing Ju, colonel of the Wuhuan, and replaced him. Yuan Shao then favored and comforted Rou in order to quiet the northern border. When Shao's son Shang was defeated, he fled to Tadun. At that time more than one hundred thousand households of officials and people from You and Ji had fled to the Wuhuan. Shang wished to rely on their military strength and again plot for China. When Cao Cao had pacified Hebei, Yan Rou led Xianbei and Wuhuan to attach themselves, and Cao immediately made Rou colonel. In the twelfth Jian'an year, Cao Cao personally campaigned against the Wuhuan, greatly defeated Tadun at Liucheng, and beheaded him. Heads and captives numbered more than two hundred thousand. Yuan Shang with Louban, Wuyan, and the others all fled to Liaodong; Gongsun Kang, administrator of Liaodong, beheaded them all and sent their heads. The remaining people, more than ten thousand settlements, were all moved to live in China.

The Xianbei were also a branch of the Eastern Hu. They separately relied on Mount Xianbei and therefore took their name from it. Their language and customs were the same as those of the Wuhuan. Only in marriage did they first cut the hair and hold a great assembly in the late third month above the Raole water. After drinking and feasting, they then paired. There were also birds and beasts different from those of China: wild horses, yuan sheep, and jiaoduan cattle. They used the horns as bows, which by custom were called jiaoduan bows. There were also sable, na, and huizi, whose skins and fur were soft; therefore all under Heaven considered them famous furs.

At the beginning of Han they too were broken by Maodun and fled far beyond the frontier of Liaodong. They connected with the Wuhuan and had not regularly communicated with China. At the beginning of Guangwu's reign, the Xiongnu were strong and flourishing and led the Xianbei and Wuhuan to raid and plunder the northern border, killing and seizing officers and people, with no peaceful year. In the twenty-first Jianwu year, the Xianbei and Xiongnu entered Liaodong. Ji Tong, the administrator of Liaodong, struck and broke them, beheading and capturing almost all; the affair is fully in Ji Tong's biography. From this they were shaken with fear. When the southern shanyu attached himself to Han and the northern enemy was isolated and weak, in the twenty-fifth year the Xianbei first communicated by relay envoys.

Afterward Pianhe and other protectors went to Ji Tong and asked to perform merit on their own. He therefore ordered them to attack the left Yiyuzi division of the northern Xiongnu, and they cut off more than two thousand heads. After that Pianhe sent out troops year after year to strike the northern enemy; whenever he returned he took heads to Liaodong and received rewards. In the thirtieth year, Xianbei great men Yuqiuben, Mantou, and others led their people to the palace gate for court congratulations, admiring righteousness and becoming inwardly attached. The emperor enfeoffed Yuqiuben as king and Mantou as marquis. At that time Xinzhiben and others of the Chishan Wuhuan in Yuyang repeatedly raided Shanggu. In the first Yongping year, Ji Tong again bribed Pianhe to attack Xinzhiben; he broke and beheaded him. Thereupon the Xianbei great men all came to return and attach themselves, and all went to Liaodong to receive rewards. Qing and Xu provinces supplied 270 million cash yearly, and this became the standing rule. In the two reigns of Ming and Zhang, they protected the frontier and there was no affair.

In the Yongyuan period of Emperor He, Dou Xian, the great general, sent Geng Kui, right colonel, to attack and break the Xiongnu. The northern shanyu fled. The Xianbei then shifted and occupied his land. Among the remaining Xiongnu stock who stayed there were still more than one hundred thousand settlements, and all called themselves Xianbei. From this the Xianbei gradually became strong. In the ninth year the Liaodong Xianbei attacked Feiru county. Ji Can, the administrator, was imprisoned and died for defeat and obstruction. In the thirteenth year the Liaodong Xianbei raided Right Beiping and then entered Yuyang; the administrator of Yuyang struck and broke them.

In the first Yanping year, the Xianbei again raided Yuyang. Zhang Xian, the administrator, led several hundred men beyond the frontier to pursue them. Yan Shou, aide for troops and horses, remonstrated: "The road ahead is dangerous and obstructed, and the enemy's strength is hard to measure. It is fitting to make camp for now and first order light cavalry to scout them." Xian's intention was very sharp; he was angry and wished to behead him. He then again advanced the troops. They met the enemy, whose ambush was released. The soldiers all ran. Only Shou fought hard, received ten wounds on his body, killed several men with his own hand, and died. Xian was hit by a stray arrow. Wei Fu, chief clerk, and Xu Xian, merit officer, both threw themselves toward Xian and all died in the formation. Empress Dowager Deng praised and sighed over them in a policy letter and granted Xian six hundred thousand cash, making two men of his household gentlemen. Shou, Fu, and Xian each received one hundred thousand cash, and one son of each was appointed gentleman.

In the Yongchu period of Emperor An, the Xianbei great man Yanliyang went to the palace gate for court congratulations. Empress Dowager Deng granted Yanliyang a king's seal and ribbon, a red carriage with three-horse team, and ordered him to stop below Ningcheng, the seat of the Wuhuan colonel, and to communicate with the Hu market. She then built southern and northern hostage lodges. The Xianbei settlements, one hundred twenty divisions, each sent hostages. After this they sometimes surrendered and sometimes rebelled, attacking one another in turn with the Xiongnu and Wuhuan.

In the autumn of the second Yuanchu year, the Liaodong Xianbei surrounded Wulü county. The province and commandery combined troops, held firm, and cleared the countryside, so the Xianbei obtained nothing. They then attacked the Fuli camp and killed senior officers. In the fourth year, Lianxiu and other Liaoxi Xianbei burned the frontier gates and raided the people. The Wuhuan great man Yuzhiju and others had an old grievance with Lianxiu. Together with commandery troops they rushed and attacked, greatly defeated him, cut off thirteen hundred heads, and captured all his living people, cattle, horses, and property. In the autumn of the fifth year, more than ten thousand Xianbei cavalry from Dai commandery pierced the frontier and entered to raid, dividing to attack towns, burn official temples, kill senior officers, and depart. Armored soldiers from the border and troops of the Liyang camp were then raised and garrisoned at Shanggu to prepare against them. In winter the Xianbei entered Shanggu and attacked Juyong Pass. Troops from the border commanderies, the Liyang camp, and skilled archers, twenty thousand infantry and cavalry, were again raised and stationed at key points. In the autumn of the sixth year, the Xianbei entered Macheng frontier and killed senior officers. Deng Zun, general crossing the Liao, raised three thousand skilled archers, and Ma Xu, palace gentleman general, led the southern shanyu, joining with the troops of Liaoxi and Right Beiping to go beyond the frontier and pursue the Xianbei. They greatly defeated them and obtained many living captives, cattle, sheep, and goods. Another three thousand skilled archers and three thousand horses were sent to the Liao-crossing camp for garrison duty.

In the first Yongning year, Wulun and Qizhijian, great men of the Liaoxi Xianbei, led their followers to Deng Zun and surrendered, offering tribute. An edict enfeoffed Wulun as king leading the people and Qizhijian as marquis leading the people, granting colored silk to each in differing amounts.

In the autumn of the first Jianguang year, Qizhijian again rebelled and raided Juyong. Cheng Yan, administrator of Yunzhong, attacked him; the troops were defeated, and Yang Mu, merit officer, used his body to shield Yan and died fighting with him. The Xianbei then surrounded Xu Chang, Wuhuan colonel, at Macheng. Geng Kui, general crossing the Liao, and Pang Can, inspector of You province, raised armored soldiers from Guangyang, Yuyang, and Zhuo commanderies and divided them into two roads to rescue him. Chang secretly came out by night and joined force with Kui and the others; they advanced together, attacked the enemy encirclement, and lifted it. Since the Xianbei had repeatedly killed commandery governors, their courage and intentions grew stronger; they had several tens of thousands of bow-drawing cavalry. In the winter of the first Yanguang year they again raided Yanmen and Dingxiang, then attacked Taiyuan and plundered and killed the people. In the winter of the second year, Qizhijian personally led more than ten thousand cavalry into the eastern watch-lines, divided them into several roads, and attacked the southern Xiongnu at Manbai. The Aojian Rizhu king died in battle, and more than a thousand men were killed. In the autumn of the third year they again raided Gaoliu, defeated the southern Xiongnu, and killed the Jianjiang king.

In the autumn of the first Yongjian year of Emperor Shun, the Xianbei Qizhijian raided Dai commandery, and Li Chao, the administrator, died in battle. The next spring Zhang Guo, palace gentleman general, sent an aide with more than ten thousand infantry and cavalry from the southern shanyu beyond the frontier to attack and break him, capturing more than two thousand kinds of his baggage and supplies. At that time more than six thousand cavalry of the Liaodong Xianbei also raided Liaodong and Xuantu. Geng Ye, Wuhuan colonel, raised troops from the border commanderies and the Wuhuan king leading the people, went beyond the frontier, and struck them. They cut off several hundred heads and took many living captives, cattle, horses, and equipment. The Xianbei then led thirty thousand of their people to Liaodong to beg surrender. In the third and fourth years, the Xianbei repeatedly raided Yuyang and Shuofang. In the autumn of the sixth year, Geng Ye sent a major with several thousand Hu troops beyond the frontier to attack and break them. In winter the administrator of Yuyang again sent Wuhuan troops to attack them, cutting off eight hundred heads and capturing cattle, horses, and living people. The Wuhuan strong man Fushuguan was brave and strong; whenever he fought the Xianbei he broke into the enemy. An edict gave him the title "lord leading the people."

In the winter of the first Yangjia year, Geng Ye sent Rong Zhugui, Wuhuan commandant close to Han, together with kings and marquises leading people such as Duogui, beyond the frontier to plunder and strike the Xianbei. They returned with great beheading and capture. Duogui and those below him were granted ranks as kings, marquises, and chiefs leading the people and colored silk in differing amounts. Afterward the Xianbei raided the dependency state of Liaodong, so Geng Ye moved his garrison to Wulü city in Liaodong to resist them. In the spring of the second year, Zhao Chou, palace gentleman general of the Xiongnu, sent an aide leading Fushen, Guduhou of the southern Xiongnu, and others beyond the frontier to attack the Xianbei. They broke them and beheaded and captured many. An edict granted Fushen a gold seal, purple ribbon, and plain and colored silk in differing amounts. In autumn the Xianbei pierced the frontier and entered Macheng. The administrator of Dai commandery attacked them but could not overcome them. After Qizhijian died, Xianbei raiding and robbery became somewhat rarer.

In Emperor Huan's time, there was a Xianbei man named Tanshihuai. His father, Touluhou, had first gone with the Xiongnu army for three years. His wife remained at home and bore a son. When Touluhou returned, he was suspicious and wished to kill her. His wife said that one day, as she was walking, she heard thunder shake, looked up at Heaven, and a hailstone entered her mouth. She swallowed it, became pregnant, and after ten months gave birth. This child would surely be extraordinary, and for the time being should be raised and watched. Touluhou would not listen and abandoned him. His wife secretly told the household manager to take and raise him. He was named Tanshihuai.

When he was fourteen or fifteen, he was brave, strong, and had wisdom and strategy. A great man of another division plundered and took cattle and sheep from his mother's family. Tanshihuai pursued and struck him with a single horse. Wherever he went none stood before him, and he recovered all that had been lost. From this the divisions feared and submitted to him. He then set up laws and prohibitions and made crooked and straight equal; no one dared violate them. They then promoted him as great man. Tanshihuai established his court above the Chuochou water at Tanhan Mountain, more than three hundred li north of Gaoliu. His troops and horses were very strong, and the great men of the eastern and western divisions all returned to him. He then plundered the border to the south, resisted Dingling to the north, drove back Buyeo to the east, and attacked Wusun to the west. He fully occupied the old land of the Xiongnu, more than fourteen thousand li east to west and more than seven thousand li north to south, netting mountains, rivers, waters, marshes, and salt pools.

In the autumn of the second Yongshou year, Tanshihuai led three or four thousand cavalry to raid Yunzhong. In the first Yanxi year the Xianbei raided the northern border. In winter Zhang Huan, palace gentleman general of the Xiongnu, was sent to lead the southern shanyu beyond the frontier to strike them, cutting off two hundred heads. In the second year they again entered Yanmen, killed several hundred people, greatly plundered, and left. In the summer of the sixth year, more than a thousand cavalry raided the dependency state of Liaodong. In the summer of the ninth year they divided several tens of thousands of cavalry and entered the nine border commanderies, killing and plundering officers and people everywhere. Zhang Huan was again sent to attack them, and the Xianbei went out beyond the frontier. The court had long suffered from them but could not control them. It then sent envoys holding seals and ribbons to enfeoff Tanshihuai as king and wished to make marriage alliance and peace. Tanshihuai would not accept, and his raiding and plundering grew still worse.

He then divided his land into three divisions. From Right Beiping east to Liaodong, connecting with Buyeo and Yemaek, more than twenty settlements formed the eastern division. From Right Beiping west to Shanggu, more than ten settlements formed the central division. From Shanggu west to Dunhuang and Wusun, more than twenty settlements formed the western division. He set great men over each to command them, and all belonged to Tanshihuai.

When Emperor Ling was established, the border commanderies of You, Bing, and Liang provinces had no year without Xianbei raiding and plundering; those killed and seized could not be counted. In the winter of the third Xiping year, the Xianbei entered Beidi. Xia Yu, the administrator, led Xiuzhu Tuge to pursue, strike, and break them. Yu was transferred to be colonel protector of the Wuhuan. In the fifth year the Xianbei raided You province. In the summer of the sixth year the Xianbei raided the three borders. In autumn Xia Yu reported: "Since spring the Xianbei have raided the border more than thirty times. I ask that troops be levied from the commanderies of You province and sent beyond the frontier to strike them. With one winter and two springs, they can surely be captured and destroyed." The court did not yet permit it.

Before this, Tian Yan, colonel protector of the Qiang, had been sentenced for an affair and then pardoned. He wished to establish merit and offer service and therefore asked the palace attendant Wang Fu to obtain a command for him. Fu used this to propose sending troops to join strength with Xia Yu in punishing the enemy. The emperor then appointed Yan palace gentleman general for breaking the Xianbei. Many great ministers disagreed, and the hundred officials were summoned to discuss it in the court hall. Cai Yong, discussion gentleman, gave this opinion:

"The Documents warns against those who disturb Xia; the Changes attacks Guifang; Zhou had armies against Xianyun and Manjing; Han had the affairs of Tianyan and the Vast Sea. Campaigns against different kinds have an old origin. Yet times are same and different, circumstances have can and cannot, and therefore plans have gain and loss and affairs success and failure; they cannot be made uniform.

"Emperor Wu's mind held distant strategy, and his will opened the four quarters. In the south he punished the hundred Yue; in the north he attacked the strong Hu; in the west he campaigned against Dawan; in the east he annexed Chaoxian. Using the accumulation of Wen and Jing and relying on the abundance of all under Heaven, within several tens of years officials and people were both exhausted. He therefore raised the profit of salt, iron, and wine monopolies and set laws for reporting hidden money and heavy taxation. The people could not bear the commands and rose as bandits; east of the passes was disturbed, and the roads did not communicate. Embroidered-cloak direct envoys, brandishing axe and battle-ax, came out together. Afterward he awakened, rested troops and ended service, and the chancellor became Marquis of Enriching the People. Therefore Zhufu Yan said: 'Among those who make war and victory their business and exhaust military affairs, there has never been one who did not regret it.' With Shizong's divine martial power, with good and fierce generals and ministers, with wealth and taxes full, and with broad and distant expansions, there was still regret. How much more now, when people and wealth are both lacking and affairs are inferior to former times?

"Since the Xiongnu fled away, the Xianbei have grown strong and flourishing, occupied their former land, and claimed one hundred thousand troops. Their ability and strength are vigorous, and their intention and wisdom grow daily. Add to this that the passes and frontiers are not strict and the prohibitions and nets have many leaks: refined gold and good iron are all possessed by the enemy; Han fugitives become their counselors; their weapons are sharp and their horses swift, surpassing the Xiongnu. Formerly Duan Jiong was a good general, practiced in troops and skilled in war; yet when he dealt with the western Qiang, it still took more than ten years. Now the talent and strategy of Yu and Yan do not necessarily surpass Jiong, and the Xianbei stock and people are not weaker than the former enemy. Yet with empty calculation they promise success in two years. If disaster links and troops continue, how could it be stopped halfway? Again the many people will have to be levied, and transport will have no end. This is exhausting the Chinese lands and joining strength against barbarians. The troubles of the border are an itch on the hands and feet; the distress of China is an abscess on chest and back. At present, thieves and bandits in the commanderies and counties still cannot be restrained. How much less can this ugly enemy be subdued?

"Formerly Gaozu endured the shame of Pingcheng, and Empress Lü cast aside the insult of a disrespectful letter. Compared with the present, which is more serious?

"Heaven set mountains and rivers; Qin built the Great Wall; Han raised frontier walls, all in order to distinguish inner and outer and separate different customs. If there is no humiliation of the state within, that is acceptable. Why compete back and forth over raids with insects and ants? Even if they are sometimes broken, how could they be exterminated, and should the present court eat late for them?

"One who concentrates on victory does not necessarily overcome; one who holds doubts does not necessarily fail. What the many call dangerous, a sage does not undertake; where court discussion has suspicion, an enlightened ruler does not act. Formerly Liu An, king of Huainan, remonstrated against attacking Yue, saying: 'The army of the Son of Heaven has campaigns but no battles, meaning that none dares match it. If the men of Yue cover themselves in death and resist the servants and porters of the officials, and if one returns unprepared, then even if the head of the Yue king is obtained, it is still shame for great Han.' To exchange registered commoners for an ugly enemy and have imperial authority humiliated among outer Yi is already dangerous even if the words of Yu and Yan are fulfilled. How much more when gain and loss cannot be measured?

"Formerly when Zhuyai commandery rebelled, Emperor Yuan accepted Jia Juanzhi's words and issued an edict: 'Zhuyai has rebelled. Now some discussants say it can be punished, and some say it should be abandoned. Day and night I think on this. Ashamed that authority is not carried out, I wish to execute it; but when I understand the changes of the time, I again worry over the ten thousand people. Which is greater: the hunger of the ten thousand people, or a distant barbarian not being punished? Even sacrifices at the ancestral temple are sometimes incomplete in bad years. How much more should we avoid a humiliation that need not be avoided? Now the east of the passes is greatly distressed and has no means to support itself. If troops are again moved, it will not merely labor the people. Abolish Zhuyai commandery.' This is why Emperor Yuan issued his virtuous words. To care for the people and rescue urgency, even a completed commandery with listed counties was still abandoned. How much more what lies beyond the barriers and frontiers and has never been a dwelling of the people? As for the art of guarding the border, Li Mu was good in outline; as for the argument for preserving the frontier, Yan You set out its essentials. The inherited works still exist and the writings are complete. Follow the plans of these two men and guard the rules of the former emperors. I say that is acceptable."

The emperor did not follow him. Xia Yu was then sent out from Gaoliu, Tian Yan out from Yunzhong, and Zang Min, palace gentleman general of the Xiongnu, led the southern shanyu out from Yanmen. Each led ten thousand cavalry, and by three roads they went out more than two thousand li beyond the frontier. Tanshihuai ordered the great men of the three divisions each to lead their people and meet them in battle. Xia Yu and the others were greatly defeated, lost their credentials, passes, and baggage, and each led several tens of cavalry running back. Seven or eight in ten died. The three generals were summoned in caged carts and imprisoned, but redeemed their punishment and became commoners.

In winter the Xianbei raided Liaoxi. In the winter of the first Guanghe year they again raided Jiuquan; none along the border failed to suffer poison. Their kinds and people increased daily, and farming, livestock, shooting, and hunting were not enough to provide food. Tanshihuai then personally made an inspection tour. He saw that the water of Wuhou Qin was broad for several hundred li, stood without flowing, and had fish in it, but they could not obtain them. Hearing that the Wa people were good at netting and catching, he then attacked the Wa state to the east, obtained more than a thousand households, and moved them to live above the Qin water, ordering them to catch fish to assist with food.

In the Guanghe period, Tanshihuai died at forty-five. His son Helian took his place. Helian's talent and strength did not match his father's. He also repeatedly raided and plundered, but his nature was greedy and licentious, and his judgments were not fair; half the people rebelled against him. Later, when he went out to attack Beidi, a man of Lian who was good with the crossbow shot Helian and hit him; he died at once. His son Qianman was young, and Kuitou, son of his elder brother, was established. After Qianman grew up, he contended with Kuitou over the state, and the people then separated and scattered. When Kuitou died, his younger brother Budugen was established. After Tanshihuai, the great men passed power to one another by hereditary succession.

The appraisal says: Among the violence of the four Yi, their strength alternated. The Xiongnu blazed in high Han; the western Qiang were fierce during the restoration. Between Ling and Xian, the two enemies flourished in turn. Shihuai was bold and fierce and possessed all the shanyu's land. Tadun was cruel and outstanding and openly occupied the land of Liaoxi. Their pressing across China, forming troubles for living men, had no age of peace. Yet the highest strategy for controlling them has not been heard through the ages; the policies of Zhou and Han barely obtained the middle and lower ranks. Was it Heaven's dark number that brought things to this?

The praise says: The two enemies shifted first and last, obstructing our northern border. When the Way was open, they were tamed; when the age thinned, they were first to separate.

Colophon

This Good Works Translation was made from the Classical Chinese text of Hou Han Shu, Wuhuan and Xianbei Biography, preserved in the local Scythian expansion source base.

The translation is complete for the source body printed below. It keeps the chapter's ethnographic, military, and court-policy registers visible so the source can be read beside the Southern Xiongnu biography and the wider Chinese frontier shelf.

Compiled for the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026.

🌲

Source Text: Classical Chinese

### 烏桓鮮卑列傳

烏桓者，本東胡也。漢初，匈奴冒頓滅其國，餘類保烏桓山，因以為號焉。俗善騎射，弋獵禽獸為事。隨水草放牧，居無常處。以穹廬為舍，東開向日。食肉飲酪，以毛毳為衣。貴少而賤老，其性悍塞。怒則殺父兄，而終不害其母，以母有族類，父兄無相仇報故也。有勇健能理決鬥訟者，推為大人，無世業相繼。邑落各有小帥，數百千落自為一部。大人有所召呼，則刻木為信，雖無文字，而部眾不敢違犯。氏姓無常，以大人健者名字為姓。大人以下，各自畜牧營產，不相傜役。其嫁娶則先略女通情，或半歲百日，然後送牛馬羊畜，以為娉幣。婿隨妻還家，妻家無尊卑，旦旦拜之，而不拜其父母。為妻家僕役，一二年閒，妻家乃厚遣送女，居處財物一皆為辦。其俗妻後母，報寡泽，死則歸其故夫。計謀從用婦人，唯鬥戰之事乃自決之。父子男女相對踞蹲。以髡頭為輕便。婦人至嫁時乃養髮，分為髻，著句決，飾以金碧，猶中國有簂步搖。婦人能刺韋作文繡，織氀毼。男子能作弓矢鞍勒，鍛金鐵為兵器。其土地宜穄及東牆。東牆似蓬草，實如穄子，至十月而熟。見鳥獸孕乳，以別四節。

俗貴兵死，斂屍以棺，有哭泣之哀，至葬則歌舞相送。肥養一犬，以彩繩纓牽，并取死者所乘馬衣物，皆燒而送之，言以屬累犬，使護死者神靈歸赤山。赤山在遼東西北數千里，如中國人死者魂神歸岱山也。敬鬼神，祠天地日月星辰山川及先大人有健名者。祠用牛羊，畢皆燒之。其約法：違大人言者，罪至死；若相賊殺者，令部落自相報，不止，詣大人告之，聽出馬牛羊以贖死；其自殺父兄則無罪；若亡畔為大人所捕者，邑落不得受之，皆徙逐於雍狂之地，沙漠之中。其土多蝮蛇，在丁令西南，烏孫東北焉。

烏桓自為冒頓所破，眾遂孤弱，常臣伏匈奴，歲輸牛馬羊皮，過時不具，輒沒其妻子。及武帝遣驃騎將軍霍去病擊破匈奴左地，因徙烏桓於上谷、漁陽、右北平、遼西、遼東五郡塞外，為漢偵察匈奴動靜。其大人歲一朝見，於是始置護烏桓校尉，秩二千石，擁節監領之，使不得與匈奴交通。

昭帝時，烏桓漸強，乃發匈奴單于冢墓，以報冒頓之怨。匈奴大怒，乃東擊破烏桓。大將軍霍光聞之，因遣度遼將軍范明友將二萬騎出遼東邀匈奴，而虜已引去。明友乘烏桓新敗，遂進擊之，斬首六千餘級，獲其三王首而還。由是烏桓復寇幽州，明友輒破之。宣帝時，乃稍保塞降附。

及王莽篡位，欲擊匈奴，興十二部軍，使東域將嚴尤領烏桓、丁令兵屯代郡，皆質其妻子於郡縣。烏桓不便水土，懼久屯不休，數求謁去。莽不肯遣，遂自亡畔，還為抄盜，而諸郡盡殺其質，由是結怨於莽。匈奴因誘其豪帥以為吏，餘者皆羈縻屬之。

光武初，烏桓與匈奴連兵為寇，代郡以東尤被其害。居止近塞，朝發穹廬，暮至城郭，五郡民庶，家受其辜，至於郡縣損壞，百姓流亡。其在上谷塞外白山者，最為強富。

建武二十一年，遣伏波將軍馬援將三千騎出五阮關掩擊之。烏桓逆知，悉相率逃走，追斬百級而還。烏桓復尾擊援後，援遂晨夜奔歸，比入塞，馬死者千餘匹。

二十二年，匈奴國亂，烏桓乘弱擊破之，匈奴轉北徙數千里，漠南地空，帝乃以幣帛賂烏桓。二十五年，遼西烏桓大人郝旦等九百二十二人率眾向化，詣闕朝貢，獻奴婢牛馬及弓虎豹貂皮。

是時四夷朝賀，絡驛而至，天子乃命大會勞饗，賜以珍寶。烏桓或願留宿衛，於是封其渠帥為侯王君長者八十一人，皆居塞內，布於緣邊諸郡，令招來種人，給其衣食，遂為漢偵候，助擊匈奴、鮮卑。時司徒掾班彪上言：「烏桓天性輕黠，好為寇賊，若久放縱而無總領者，必復侵掠居人，但委主降掾史，恐非所能制。臣愚以為宜復置烏桓校尉，誠有益於附集，省國家之邊慮。」帝從之。於是始復置校尉於上谷甯城，開營府，并領鮮卑，賞賜質子，歲時互市焉。

及明、章、和三世，皆保塞無事。安帝永初三年夏，漁陽烏桓與右北平胡千餘寇代郡、上谷。秋，鴈門烏桓率眾王無何允，與鮮卑大人丘倫等，及南匈奴骨都侯，合七千騎寇五原，與太守戰於九原高渠谷，漢兵大敗，殺郡長吏。乃遣車騎將軍何熙、度遼將軍梁慬等擊，大破之。無何乞降，鮮卑走還塞外。是後烏桓稍復親附，拜其大人戎朱廆為親漢都尉。

順帝陽嘉四年冬，烏桓寇雲中，遮截道上商賈車牛千餘兩，度遼將軍耿曄率二千餘人追擊，不利，又戰於沙南，斬首五百級。烏桓遂圍曄於蘭池城，於是發積射士二千人，度遼營千人，配上郡屯，以討烏桓，烏桓乃退。永和五年，烏桓大人阿堅、羌渠等與南匈奴左部句龍吾斯反畔，中郎將張耽擊破斬之，餘眾悉降。桓帝永壽中，朔方烏桓與休著屠各並畔，中郎將張奐搫平之。延熹九年夏，烏桓復與鮮卑及南匈奴鮮卑寇緣邊九郡，俱反，張奐討之，皆出塞去。

靈帝初，烏桓大人上谷有難樓者，眾九千餘落，遼西有丘力居者，眾五千餘落，皆自稱王；又遼東蘇僕延，眾千餘落，自稱峭王；右北平烏延，眾八百餘落，自稱汗魯王：並勇建而多計策。中平四年，前中山太守張純畔，入丘力居眾中，自號彌天安定王，遂為諸郡烏桓元帥，寇掠青、徐、幽、冀四州。五年，以劉虞為幽州牧，虞購募斬純首，北州乃定。

獻帝初平中，丘力居死，子樓班年少，從子蹋頓有武略，代立，總攝三郡，眾皆從其號令。建安初，冀州牧袁紹與前將軍公孫瓚相持不決，蹋頓遣使詣紹求和親，遂遣兵助擊瓚，破之。紹矯制賜蹋頓、難樓、蘇僕延、烏延等，皆以單于印綬。後難樓、蘇僕延率其部眾奉樓班為單于，蹋頓為王，然蹋頓猶秉計策。廣陽人閻柔，少沒烏桓、鮮卑中，為其種人所歸信，柔乃因鮮卑眾，殺烏桓校尉邢舉而代之。袁紹因寵慰柔，以安北邊。及紹子尚敗，奔蹋頓。時幽、冀吏人奔烏桓者十萬餘戶，尚欲憑其兵力，復圖中國。會曹操平河北，閻柔率鮮卑、烏桓歸附，操即以柔為校尉。建安十二年，曹操自征烏桓，大破蹋頓於柳城，斬之，首虜二十餘萬人。袁尚與樓班、烏延等皆走遼東，遼東太守公孫康並斬送之。其餘眾萬餘落，悉徙居中國云。

鮮卑者，亦東胡之支也，別依鮮卑山，故因號焉。其言語習俗與烏桓同。唯婚姻先髡頭，以季春月大會於饒樂水上，飲讌畢，然後配合。又禽獸異於中國者，野馬、原羊、角端牛，以角為弓，俗謂之角端弓者。又有貂、豽、鼲子，皮毛柔蝡，故天下以為名裘。

漢初，亦為冒頓所破，遠竄遼東塞外，與烏桓相接，未常通中國焉。光武初，匈奴強盛，率鮮卑與烏桓寇抄北邊，殺略吏人，無有寧歲。建武二十一年，鮮卑與匈奴入遼東，遼東太守祭肜擊破之，斬獲殆盡，事已具肜傳，由是震怖。及南單于附漢，北虜孤弱，二十五年，鮮卑始通驛使。

其後都護偏何等詣祭肜求自效功，因令擊北匈奴左伊育訾部，斬首二千餘級。其後偏何連歲出兵擊北虜，還輒持首級詣遼東受賞賜。三十年，鮮卑大人於仇賁、滿頭等率種人詣闕朝賀，慕義內屬。帝封於仇賁為王，滿頭為侯。時漁陽赤山烏桓歆志賁等數寇上谷。永平元年，祭肜復賂偏何擊歆志賁，破斬之，於是鮮卑大人皆來歸附，並詣遼東受賞賜，青徐二州給錢歲二億七千萬為常。明章二世，保塞無事。

和帝永元中，大將軍竇憲遣右校尉耿夔擊破匈奴，北單于逃走，鮮卑因此轉徙據其地。匈奴餘種留者尚有十餘萬落，皆自號鮮卑，鮮卑由此漸盛。九年，遼東鮮卑攻肥如縣，太守祭參坐沮敗，下獄死。十三年，遼東鮮卑寇右北平，因入漁陽，漁陽太守擊破之。延平元年，鮮卑復寇漁陽，太守張顯率數百人出塞追之。兵馬掾嚴授諫曰：「前道險阻，賊埶難量，宜且結營，先令輕騎偵視之。」顯意甚銳，怒欲斬之。因復進兵，遇虜伏發，士卒悉走，唯授力戰，身被十創，手殺數人而死。顯中流矢，主簿衛福、功曹徐咸皆自投赴顯，俱歿於陣。鄧太后策書褒歎，賜顯錢六十萬，以家二人為郎；授、福、咸各錢十萬，除一子為郎。

安帝永初中，鮮卑大人燕荔陽詣闕朝賀，鄧太后賜燕荔陽王印綬，赤車參駕，令止烏桓校尉所居甯城下，通胡市，因築南北兩部質館。鮮卑邑落百二十部，各遣入質。是後或降或畔，與匈奴、烏桓更相攻擊。

元初二年秋，遼東鮮卑圍無慮縣，州郡合兵固保清野，鮮卑無所得。復攻扶黎營，殺長吏。四年，遼西鮮卑連休等遂燒塞門，寇百姓。烏桓大人於秩居等與連休有宿怨，共郡兵奔擊，大破之，斬首千三百級，悉獲其生口牛馬財物。五年秋，代郡鮮卑萬餘騎遂穿塞入寇，分攻城邑，燒官寺，殺長吏而去。乃發緣邊甲卒、黎陽營兵，屯上谷以備之。冬，鮮卑入上谷，攻居庸關，復發緣邊諸郡、黎陽營兵、積射士步騎二萬人，屯列衝要。六年秋，鮮卑入馬城塞，殺長吏，度遼將軍鄧遵發積射士三千人，及中郎將馬續率南單于，與遼西、右北平兵馬會，出塞追擊鮮卑，大破之，獲生口及牛羊財物甚眾。又發積射士三千人，馬三千匹，詣度遼營屯守。

永寧元年，遼西鮮卑大人烏倫、其至鞬率眾詣鄧遵降，奉貢獻。詔封烏倫為率眾王，其至鞬為率眾侯，賜綵繒各有差。

建光元年秋，其至鞬復畔，寇居庸，雲中太守成嚴擊之，兵敗，功曹楊穆以身捍嚴，與俱戰歿。鮮卑於是圍烏桓校尉徐常於馬城。度遼將軍耿夔與幽州刺史龐參發廣陽、漁陽、涿郡甲卒，分為兩道救之；常夜得潛出，與夔等并力並進，攻賊圍，解之。鮮卑既累殺郡守，膽意轉盛，控弦數萬騎。延光元年冬，復寇鴈門、定襄，遂攻太原，掠殺百姓。二年冬，其至鞬自將萬餘騎入東領候，分為數道，攻南匈奴於曼柏，薁鞬日逐王戰死，殺千餘人。三年秋，復寇高柳，擊破南匈奴，殺漸將王。

順帝永建元年秋，鮮卑其至鞬寇代郡，太守李超戰死。明年春，中郎將張國遣從事將南單于兵步騎萬餘人出塞，擊破之，獲其資重二千餘種。時遼東鮮卑六千餘騎亦寇遼東玄菟，烏桓校尉耿曄發緣邊諸郡兵及烏桓率眾王出塞擊之，斬首數百級，大獲其生口牛馬什物，鮮卑乃率種眾三萬人詣遼東乞降。三年，四年，鮮卑頻寇漁陽、朔方。六年秋，耿曄遣司馬將胡兵數千人，出塞擊破之。冬，漁陽太守又遣烏桓兵擊之，斬首八百級，獲牛馬生口。烏桓豪人扶漱官勇健，每與鮮卑戰，輒陷敵，詔賜號「率眾君」。

陽嘉元年冬，耿曄遣烏桓親漢都尉戎朱廆率眾王侯咄歸等，出塞抄擊鮮卑，大斬獲而還，賜咄歸等已下為率眾王、侯、長，賜綵繒各有差。鮮卑後寇遼東屬國，於是耿曄乃移屯遼東無慮城拒之。二年春，匈奴中郎將趙稠遣從事將南匈奴骨都侯夫沈等，出塞擊鮮卑，破之，斬獲甚眾，詔賜夫沈金印紫綬及縑綵各有差。秋，鮮卑穿塞入馬城，代郡太守擊之，不能克。後其至鞬死，鮮卑抄盜差稀。

桓帝時，鮮卑檀石槐者，其父投鹿侯、初從匈奴軍三年，其妻在家生子。投鹿侯歸，怪欲殺之。妻言嘗晝行聞雷震，仰天視而雹入其口，因吞之，遂妊身，十月而產，此子必有奇異，且宜長視。投鹿侯不聽，遂棄之。妻私語家令收養焉，名檀石槐。年十四五，勇健有智略。異部大人抄取其外家牛羊，檀石槐單騎追擊之，所向無前，悉還得所亡者，由是部落畏服。乃施法禁，平曲直，無敢犯者，遂推以為大人。檀石槐乃立庭於彈汗山歠仇水上，去高柳北三百餘里，兵馬甚盛，東西部大人皆歸焉。因南抄緣邊，北拒丁零，東卻夫餘，西擊烏孫，盡據匈奴故地，東西萬四千餘里，南北七千餘里，網羅山川水澤鹽池。

永壽二年秋，檀石槐遂將三四千騎寇雲中。延熹元年，鮮卑寇北邊。冬，使匈奴中郎將張奐率南單于出塞擊之，斬首二百級。二年，復入鴈門，殺數百人，大抄掠而去。六年夏，千餘騎寇遼東屬國。九年夏，遂分騎數萬人入緣邊九郡，並殺掠吏人，於是復遣張奐擊之，鮮卑乃出塞去。朝廷積患之，而不能制，遂遣使持印綬封檀石槐為王，欲與和親。檀石槐不肯受，而寇抄滋甚。乃自分其地為三部，從右北平以東至遼東，接夫餘、濊貊二十餘邑為東部，從右北平以西至上谷十餘邑為中部，從上谷以西至敦煌、烏孫二十餘邑為西部，各置大人主領之，皆屬檀石槐。

靈帝立，幽、并、涼三州緣邊諸郡無歲不被鮮卑寇抄，殺略不可勝數。熹平三年冬，鮮卑入北地，太守夏育率休著屠各追擊破之。遷育為護烏桓校尉。五年，鮮卑寇幽州。六年夏，鮮卑寇三邊。秋，夏育上言：「鮮卑寇邊，自春以來，三十餘發，請徵幽州諸郡兵出塞擊之，一冬二春，必能禽滅。」朝廷未許。先是護羌校尉田晏坐事論刑被原，欲立功自效，乃請中常侍王甫求得為將，甫因此議遣兵與育并力討賊。帝乃拜晏為破鮮卑中郎將。大臣多有不同，乃召百官議朝堂。議郎蔡邕議曰：

書戒猾夏，易伐鬼方，周有獫狁、蠻荊之師，漢有闐顏、瀚海之事。征討殊類，所由尚矣。然而時有同異，埶有可否，故謀有得失，事有成敗，不可齊也。

武帝情存遠略，志闢四方，南誅百越，北討強胡，西伐大宛，東并朝鮮。因文、景之蓄，藉天下之饒，數十年閒，官民俱匱。乃興鹽鐵酒榷之利，設告緡重稅之令，民不堪命，起為盜賊，關東紛擾，道路不通。繡衣直指之使，奮鈇鉞而並出。既而覺悟，乃息兵罷役，丞相為富人侯。故主父偃曰：「夫務戰勝，窮武事，未有不悔者也。」夫以世宗神武，將相良猛，財賦充實，所拓廣遠，猶有悔焉。況今人財並乏，事劣昔時乎！

自匈奴遁逃，鮮卑強盛，據其故地，稱兵十萬，才力勁健，意智益生。加以關塞不嚴，禁網多漏，精金良鐵，皆為賊有；漢人逋逃，為之謀主，兵利馬疾，過於匈奴。昔段熲良將，習兵善戰，有事西羌，猶十餘年。今育、晏才策，未必過熲，鮮卑種眾，不弱于曩時。而虛計二載，自許有成，若禍結兵連，豈得中休？當復徵發眾人，轉運無已，是為耗竭諸夏，并力蠻夷。夫邊垂之患，手足之蚧搔；中國之困，胸背之瘭疽。方今郡縣盜賊尚不能禁，況此醜虜而可伏乎！

昔高祖忍平城之恥，呂后棄慢書之詬，方之於今，何者為甚？

天設山河，秦築長城，漢起塞垣，所以別內外，異殊俗也。苟無瞩國內侮之患則可矣，豈與蟲螘校寇計爭往來哉！雖或破之，豈可殄盡，而方今本朝為之旰食乎？

夫專勝者未必克，挾疑者未必敗，眾所謂危，聖人不任，朝議有嫌，明主不行也。昔淮南王安諫伐越曰：「天子之兵，有征無戰。言其莫敢校也。如使越人蒙死以逆執事廝輿之卒，有一不備而歸者，雖得越王之首，而猶為大漢羞之。」而欲以齊民易醜虜，皇威辱外夷，就如其言，猶已危矣，況乎得失不可量邪！昔珠崖郡反，孝元皇帝納賈捐之言，而下詔曰：「珠崖背畔，今議者或曰可討，或曰棄之。朕日夜惟思，羞威不行，則欲誅之；通于時變，復憂萬民。夫萬民之飢與遠蠻之不討，何者為大？宗廟之祭，凶年猶有不備，況避不嫌之辱哉！今關東大困，無以相贍，又當動兵，非但勞民而已。其罷珠崖郡。」此元帝所以發德音也。夫卹民救急，雖成郡列縣，尚猶棄之，況障塞之外，未嘗為民居者乎！守邊之術，李牧善其略，保塞之論，嚴尤申其要，遺業猶在，文章具存，循二子之策，守先帝之規，臣曰可矣。

帝不從。遂遣夏育出高柳，田晏出雲中，匈奴中郎將臧旻率南單于出鴈門，各將萬騎，三道出塞二千餘里。檀石槐命三部大人各帥眾逆戰，育等大敗，喪其節傳輜重，各將數十騎奔還，死者十七八。三將檻車徵下獄，贖為庶人。冬，鮮卑寇遼西。光和元年冬，又寇酒泉，緣邊莫不被毒。種眾日多，田畜射獵不足給食，檀石槐乃自徇行，見烏侯秦水廣從數百里，水停不流，其中有魚，不能得之。聞倭人善網捕，於是東擊倭人國，得千餘家，徙置秦水上，令捕魚以助糧食。

光和中，檀石槐死，時年四十五，子和連代立。和連才力不及父，亦數為寇抄，性貪淫，斷法不平，眾畔者半。後出攻北地，廉人善弩射者射中和連，即死。其子騫曼年小，兄子魁頭立。後騫曼長大，與魁頭爭國，眾遂離散。魁頭死，弟步度根立。自檀石槐後，諸大人遂世相傳襲。

論曰：四夷之暴，其埶互彊矣。匈奴熾於隆漢，西羌猛於中興。而靈獻之閒，二虜迭盛，石槐驍猛，盡有單于之地，蹋頓凶桀，公據遼西之土。其陵跨中國，結患生人者，靡世而寧焉。然制御上略，歷世無聞；周、漢之策，僅得中下。將天之冥數，以至於是乎？

贊曰：二虜首施，鯁我北垂。道暢則馴，時薄先離。

Source Colophon

The Classical Chinese source body was extracted from the local source-text page Good Works Library Ready/Scythian/Expansion Bench 2026-05-11/Hou Han Shu -- Wuhuan and Xianbei -- Classical Chinese Source Text.md and copied for this translation pass at Tulku/Tools/scythian/sources/expansion_bench_2026-05-11/hou_han_shu_wuhuan_xianbei_chinese_source_manual100.txt.

The local source page identifies its inspection route as Chinese Text Project, CTP URN ctp:hou-han-shu/wu-huan-xian-bei-lie-zhuan.

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