Pei Ji (Sui and Tang)
| Pei Ji | |
|---|---|
| Chancellor of the Tang dynasty | |
| Born | 570 |
| Died | 629 (aged 58–59) |
| Names | |
| Traditional Chinese | 裴寂 |
| Simplified Chinese | 裴寂 |
| Pinyin | Péi Jì |
| Wade–Giles | Pei Chi |
| Courtesy name | Xuanzhen (Chinese: 玄真; pinyin: Xuánzhēn; Wade–Giles: Hsuan-chen) |
| Posthumous name | Duke of Hedong (simplified Chinese: 河东公; traditional Chinese: 河東公; pinyin: Hédōng Gōng; Wade–Giles: Ho-tung Kung |
Pei Ji (570-629), courtesy name Xuanzhen, formally Duke of Hedong, was an important official and one-time chancellor of the Tang dynasty. He initially served as an official of the Sui dynasty and was one of the driving forces in persuading the general Li Yuan to rebel against Emperor Yang of Sui. He eventually assisted Li Yuan in founding the Tang dynasty as its Emperor Gaozu and was greatly honored in Emperor Gaozu's reign. After Emperor Gaozu's son Emperor Taizong became emperor in 626, Pei began to be accused of corruption and associations with witchcraft and was exiled. Emperor Taizong soon remembered Pei's contributions to Tang's founding and tried to recall him, but Pei died before he could do so.
Pei Ji was from Pu Province (蒲州, roughly modern Yuncheng, Shanxi), under Northern Zhou rule during the time of his birth. He was from the "The Western Juan Pei" of the prominent Pei clan of Hedong. His father died early, and he was raised by his older brother. When he was 13, he began serving as the secretary to a commandery governor. He was described to be handsome and having a working knowledge of literature. During the reign of Emperor Wen of Sui, he became an officer in the guard corps, but was said to be so poor that, in order to report to the capital Chang'an for duty, he had to walk there.
During the reign of Emperor Yang of Sui, he served successively as the census officer of Qi Province (齊州, roughly modern Ji'nan, Shandong), personal secretary to Emperor Yang, and then the deputy head of the household at Emperor Yang's secondary palace at Jinyang (晉陽, in modern Taiyuan, Shanxi). He had already been friendly with Li Yuan the Duke of Tang, the general in charge at Taiyuan (i.e., Jinyang) previously, and when they were both posted to Taiyuan, Pei and Li became particularly close, often feasting together. He also allowed Li Yuan to, against strict laws, have sexual relations with some of the ladies in waiting at Jinyang Palace,assumed by some historians as the main reason to rebel against Sui dynasty due to fear of severe punishment from the Emperor.
...
Wikipedia