Ji Xu

Ji Xu (Chinese: 吉頊) was an official of Wu Zetian's Zhou Dynasty, serving briefly as chancellor.

It is not known when Ji Xu was born, but it is known that he was from the Zhou capital Luoyang. He was said to be tall, good at hiding his emotions, but daring to speak. After passing the imperial examination, he was made the sheriff of Mingtang County (明堂), one of the counties making up the western capital Chang'an. At that time, his father Ji Zhe (吉哲) was serving as the prefect of Yi Prefecture (易州, in modern Baoding, Hebei) and was accused of receiving bribes, a capital offense. Ji Xu went to see Wu Zetian's powerful nephew Wu Chengsi and offered to have his two younger sisters become Wu Chengsi's servant girls. Ji Xu's sisters, after being delivered to Wu Chengsi's mansion, however, would not speak for three days, and he asked them why—and they responded, "Our father has violated the law and is set to be sentenced to death, and therefore we are worried." Wu Chengsi interceded on Ji Zhe's behalf, and Ji Zhe was spared.

In 697, Ji Xu heard that the official Liu Sili (劉思禮) had been involved in a treasonous plot to make another official, Qilian Yao (綦連耀), emperor. He reported this to fellow sheriff Lai Junchen—a previously powerful secret service official who had been demoted—and let Lai report this to Wu Zetian. As a part of subsequent investigation ordered by Wu Zetian, 36 families were slaughtered. Lai then wanted to monopolize Wu Zetian's awards, and therefore began to accuse Ji Xu of crimes. When Ji Xu heard this, he made an emergency secret report to Wu Zetian, and when she summoned him to her presence, he defended himself. Therefore, while Lai became powerful again, Ji was also promoted.

Later that year, when Lai was accused of planning to falsely accuse the Wu clan imperial princes and Wu Zetian's daughter Princess Taiping, Princess Taiping and the Wu clan princes reported this to Wu Zetian, and she arrested him, but was not certain whether to execute him, as she believed that he had contributed to her reign. On an occasion when Wu Zetian was touring her garden, Ji was attending to her, and she asked him whether there was anything unusual happening among the people. He pointed out that the people were surprised that, despite the serious crimes that Lai was accused of, Wu Zetian had not put him to death. Wu Zetian, accepting Ji's suggestion that Lai should be put to death, and did so. She also promoted Ji to be an assistant censor. It was said that because Ji was talented and full of strategies, Wu Zetian greatly trusted him as a strategist.

...
Wikipedia