Gui Youguang

Life

Gui belonged to a Kunshan lineage whose earlier generations were known for literary accomplishment; his grandmother was a granddaughter of Xia Chang, a Taichang Temple Shaoqing. His grandfather, Gui Shen, and father, Gui Zheng, never entered official service; disputes among paternal relatives over inherited property broke family relations, and Gui was especially close to his grandmother, mother, and other female relatives. Precocious from childhood, he could compose prose at nine and at ten wrote *Qixilun*, which has survived. He studied under the noted local scholar Wei Xiao, read the *Shiji* and the writings of the Eight Masters of the Tang and Song, and also read the Buddhist *Tripitaka*.

In 1525, he placed first in the boys’ examination, became a student of Suzhou Prefecture at the age of eighteen, and later entered the Nanjing Imperial College as a tribute student. In 1540, he placed second in the Yingtian provincial examination, became a *juren*, and attracted the notice of the chief examiner Zhang Zhi.

Over the following twenty years, he failed the Ministry of Rites metropolitan examination eight times. He finally passed the *jinshi* examination in 1565, placing 142nd in the third class. After this prolonged examination failure, he moved in 1542 to the banks of the Anting River in Jiading, where he read, discussed the Dao, and taught for two decades; his following ranged from several dozen to several hundred, and he became known as Master Zhenchuan. His students included Tang Shisheng and Gong Youcheng.

Because his early home stood at Xiangji Jing in Kunshan, he used the sobriquet Xiangji Sheng. Late in life he lived near Zhenze, an old name for Lake Tai, and was also called Gui Taipu because he had served as a Nanjing assistant commissioner of the Court of Imperial Studs. After passing the *jinshi* examination, he was appointed magistrate of Changxing; when hearing cases, he often persuaded both parties to reconcile. Disliked by senior officials, he was transferred to serve as a *tongpan* at Shunde.

In 1570, recommended by Gao Gong and others, he became an assistant commissioner of the Nanjing Court of Imperial Studs, while remaining in charge of the Neige Secretariat’s decree office. He helped compile the *Veritable Records of Emperor Shizong* and died in office.

His father was Gui Zheng and his grandfather was Gui Shen; his mother was Lady Zhou and his stepmother Lady Xue. His elder brother was Gui Jia, and his younger brothers were Gui Qing, Gui Shang, Gui Gong, Gui Cheng, and Gui Dao. His recorded wives were Lady Wei, Lady Wang, and Lady Fei; his son was Gui Zimu, and his great-grandson Gui Zhuang lived from 1613 to 1673.

Scholarship and literature

Gui was accomplished in poetry and prose. His prose was plain and concise, with a particular strength in narrative, and he was also classed as a scholar of the classics. He exchanged poetry and prose with Wang Shenzhong and Tang Shunzhi, and the three were known as the Three Greats of the Jiajing era. With Mao Kun and others, he shared a reverence for classical prose of the Tang and Song, and was associated with the Tang–Song School.

He claimed that he could stand alongside Ouyang Xiu and Zeng Gong; he was also ranked with Hu Youxin of Deqing as “Gui and Hu,” listed together in the *Wenshi* biographies of the *History of Ming*, and regarded as a major prose master of the Ming.

Works and influence

His works include *Zhenchuan ji* and *San Wu shuilu*; other recorded titles include *Zhenchuan wenji*, the thirty-volume *Zhenchuan xiansheng wenji*, and the thirty-volume *Zhenchuan xiansheng bieji*. Jin Jujing adopted his literary style, while Xu Xiyao followed his learning.