Wang Shihuai

Family

His great-grandfather was Wang Xuyou, his grandfather Wang Xili, and his father Wang Yishan. His elder brothers were Wang Shichun, Wang Shimei, Wang Shisong, Wang Shibai, and Wang Shigui; his younger brothers were Wang Shige, Wang Shiwu, Wang Shixiang, Wang Shidong, Wang Shinan, and Wang Shiquan.

His birth mother was Jiang, his principal mother Liu; his wife was Chen and his second wife Zou.

Life

Early in life, he studied under Liu Wenmin. He later taught disciples; He Zhi and Liu Shu'ao were among his students.

His learning emphasized shendu and took touxing as its guiding principle. He first held shengyuan status and passed the bingwu Jiangxi provincial examination as a juren; the placement appears as twentieth in one form and as “213” in another. In the 1547 Dingwei examination, he passed as a second-class jinshi.

He was appointed Nanjing bingbu zhushi and later held the posts of yuanwailang and libu langzhong. He then served as Fujian anchasi qianshi and was transferred to Sichuan.

In the ninth month of Jiajing 42 (1563), he was promoted to Shangbao si shaoqing; in the third month of Jiajing 43 (1564), to si qing; and in the ninth month of Jiajing 44 (1565), to Taipu si shaoqing.

While serving as Taipu si shaoqing, he was impeached by the yima censor Gu Tingdui after severe beatings were administered wherever he went in the counties, with deaths often occurring. In the second month of Jiajing 45 (1566), he was demoted two ranks to Guanglu si shaoqing and later dismissed in a capital review.

He was restored to his former Guanglu si shaoqing post in the sixth month of Longqing 4 (1570). The chronology of his service as Shaanxi canzheng varies: one account places his appointment at the end of Longqing and says that he returned after a capital review, while another dates his promotion to Shaanxi you canzheng to the fourth month of Longqing 5 (1571), followed by resignation and return.

During the Wanli era, he was again appointed Guizhou zuo canzheng. In the tenth month of Wanli 19 (1591), he was promoted to Nanjing Honglu si qing and then to Taichang si qing, but did not take up any of these appointments; in his later years he declined office and devoted himself to teaching.

Associations and literary activity

He wrote book prefaces for Zou Yuanbiao and Liu Risheng and epitaphs for Liu Wenmin and Liu Xuezhu. He wrote biographies of Chen Mo, Luo Furen, Zhou Shu, Liu Jian, Nie Bao, Zhou Xianxuan, Hu Xinggong, and Peng Zan. He also wrote biographies of He Jun, Zou Shouyi, Liu Bangcai, Liu Xuan, Liu Yang, Liu Guangheng, Liu Guan, and Luo Rufang, and received letters from Luo Hongxian, Zou Yuanbiao, Huang Ruheng, and Liu Kongdang.

Works

His works include Guangren leibian, Zhangnan gao, Youqingtang cun gao, and Youqingtang xu gao. Youqingtang he gao is also found as a title associated with him.

Wang Shihuai died in 1605 at the age of eighty-four.