僙 Guāng

Huang, Prince of Xiang, was first made a prince in the second year of Zhide, enfeoffed at the same time as the four Princes of Qi, Shao, Xing and Ding. He died in the seventh year of Zhenyuan. His sons were Xuan, Prince of Yiwu Commandery, and Cai, Prince of Le'an. Xuan's distant descendant was Yun. Edit

Yun was cautious and pliant by nature, with no abilities beyond other men's. In the second year of Guangqi, Tian Lingzi forced Xizong to go to Xingyuan, and Zhu Mei, Military Commissioner of Binning, pursued the imperial carriage with five thousand horsemen but did not catch it. Yun had been too ill to follow, and Mei seized him. Mei halted at Fengxiang and, having got hold of more than a hundred officials of the central departments, forced the chief minister Xiao Gou and others to lead the officials in swearing a covenant at Shibi Post Station, honoring Yun as Prince of Xiang by Succession and Supervisor of Military and State Affairs. They then returned to the capital, and at once appointed officials. Gou had at first held that it could not be done, so he was dismissed, and Mei made himself Director of the Chancellery, with all orders coming from him. Pei Che was made Vice Director of the Chancellery and Zheng Changtu Vice Director of the Secretariat, both as Managers of Affairs. Liu Zhi and some ten others were sent to the regions of the empire to explain why the Prince of Xiang by Succession was supervising the state, and all were promoted. Mei also forced Pei Qu, Grand Preceptor of the Heir Apparent, and others to present letters urging Yun to take the throne. After declining five times, Yun took the throne, changed the era name to Jianzhen, and honored Xizong as Taishang Yuanhuang Shengdi. Wang Chongrong, Military Commissioner of Hezhong, led the regional commands in sending tribute, and eight or nine in ten went over to him; Qin Zongquan of Cai Prefecture had usurped an imperial title of his own, and only Li Keyong of Taiyuan would not follow. At this time the emperor sent envoys to Chongrong and Keyong, so the two of them obeyed his orders. Yang Fugong, Commissioner of the Palace Secretariat, and others sent a proclamation through the Three Adjuncts offering the territory of the Binning command to anyone who could behead Mei. Mei's general under the false regime, Wang Xingyu, came from Feng Prefecture into the capital and killed Mei, and Yun fled with Che, Changtu and his officials to the Eastern Wei Bridge. Chongrong deceitfully sent men to welcome him. Yun took leave of his officials, weeping, and said: "When We see Chongrong, We shall have him prepare robes to receive you." When he reached Pu, he was seized and killed; Che and the others were put in fetters and jailed, the false officials were executed, and Yun's head was sent in a box to the emperor's traveling court. Yun had held the false throne nine months in all before he fell. When Yun's head arrived, the officials asked the emperor to go to the south gate of Xingyuan to receive it, and the officials offered their congratulations. Yin Yingsun, Erudite of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, memorialized: "By the rites, when a member of the ruling house commits a crime, the official in charge says, 'His crime merits death,' and the ruler says, 'Pardon him.' When this has been done three times, the offender is taken out and punished, and the ruler wears plain clothes and has no music for three days. Now Yun was of the imperial house; because he could not keep firm to his duty, he was forced into this. He should be deposed and made a commoner, struck from the clan register, and buried with the rites of a commoner. The celebration of the great victory should wait until Zhu Mei's head arrives." An edict approved this. Edit