Yang Yuling

Life

A descendant of Yang Zhen, he came from a family living north of the Yellow River. His father's name is given as Yang Daqing or Yang Taiqing; his father died during the An Lushan Rebellion, after which Yang travelled alone to Jiangzuo.

In 771, the sixth year of Emperor Daizong's Dali era, he passed the jinshi examination, and the following year he passed the Boxue Hongci examination. He entered office as Jurong county registrar, also styled Jurong magistrate. His early appointments included Shanbu yuanwailang (792), Jingzhao shaoyin (800), and governor of Jiangzhou (803), as well as Kaogong yuanwailang, Libu yuanwailang, Right Office Langzhong of the Shangshu Sheng, Libu langzhong, and Shiyushi.

Han Huang, then in military command at Jinling, admired his talent and gave him his daughter in marriage. When Han entered court with responsibility for the state's finances and wielded great influence, Yang declined to seek advancement through his father-in-law; instead he took pleasure in books and landscapes. After Han's death he entered the court, rose to Zhongshu Sheren, and was appointed Zhejiang Eastern Circuit Surveillance Commissioner, where his administrative reputation spread.

In 807 he was appointed Vice Minister of Revenue, transferred to Jingzhao Yin, and then returned to the former office. In 808 he was ordered to assess Niu Sengru's answer to the examination for Worthies and Upright Men, ranked it first, and incurred eunuch hostility; he was sent out as military commissioner of Lingnan. In 810 he became Vice Minister of Personnel. In 814, as Vice Minister of War and concurrently Censor-in-Chief, he was placed in charge of the duzhi office; in 816, because of a shortfall in military provisioning, he was demoted to prefect of Chenzhou. His appointments also included prefectural posts in Huazhou, Kuaiji, Jiangzhou, Nanhai, Guiyang, Chenzhou, and Luoyang, as well as the office of Jingzhao fuyin.

Under Emperor Muzong he rose to Minister of Revenue and served as Grand Master of State Ceremonies and Keeper of the Eastern Capital. In the second year of the Baoli era he was made Tutor to the Heir Apparent and created Duke of Hongnong. During Emperor Jingzong's reign he retired as Left Pushe and held the honorific title Shangzhuguo. He died in 830 at the age of seventy-eight, was posthumously made Sikong, and received the posthumous name Zhenxiao. He died at Wannian and was buried at Rongze the following year.

Family and literary associations

His sons included Yang Sifu, Yang Jingfu, Yang Shaofu, and Yang Shifu; his son-in-law is given as Wei Gongsu or Wei Su. Yang Kai (980–1049) is listed as a sixth-generation descendant or kun descendant, while Yang Jiang is assigned the same relationship.

He associated and exchanged verse with Chen Jian; in 821, Li Ao wrote his epitaph. He exchanged poems and prose with Quan Deyu and Mao Yu, and sent poems and prose to Liu Zongyuan, Yang Rushi, Wu Yuanheng, Bai Juyi, Liu Changqing, Liu Yuxi, and Xu Hun.

Literary work

He was a poet and skilled in prose. 《全唐詩》 preserves three of his poems; 《全唐詩續拾》 adds one poem and four fragments.