Tian Rucheng

Life

Early in life he gained a reputation for poetry, became a close friend of Jiang Zhuo, and later moved his household to Yuhang. In the fifth year of the Jiajing era (1526), he passed the jinshi examination, ranking twenty-fifth in the second class, and was appointed a Secretary in the Ministry of Justice at Nanjing (刑部主事).

His later metropolitan service included the Ministry of Rites, the Office of Ceremonial, and the Office of Sacrifices, under the titles Secretary in the Ministry of Rites, Assistant Director of the Office of Ceremonial, Director of the Office of Sacrifices, and Director of the Office of Ceremonial. In the eleventh year (1532), he left the capital in the seventh month as Guangdong Educational Commissioner (提學僉事), and was later demoted to governor of Chuzhou (知州).

In the fourteenth year, in the ninth month, he was promoted to Guizhou Assistant Commissioner (貴州僉事); in the sixteenth year, in the twelfth month, he became Right Assistant Commissioner of the Guangxi Regional Administration (廣西布政司右參議), with responsibility for the Right River. In the eighteenth year, he and Vice Commissioner Weng Wanda suppressed the rebel strongholds of Duanteng Gorge and Nutan in Guangxi, and he was raised one rank. He ended his official career in the nineteenth year (1540) as Fujian Educational Commissioner (提學副使); in the twentieth year he returned home on grounds of illness.

Literary work and writings

He was learned, had a strong memory, excelled in classical prose, and was particularly skilled in narrative; having served in the southwest, he was familiar with affairs of earlier dynasties. After returning home, he lingered among the lakes and mountains and explored the famous sites of western Zhejiang.

He wrote Yanjiao Jiwen (《炎徼紀聞》), as well as Xihu Youlan zhi (《西湖遊覽志》) and Xihu Youlan zhiyu (《西湖遊覽志餘》); the latter two titles also occur as 《西湖游覽志》 and 《西湖游覽志余》. His other works include Liao ji (《遼記》), Tian Shuhe ji (《田叔禾集》), and Yuyang ji (《豫陽集》).

The titles Xihu youyong (《西湖游詠》) and Tian Shuhe wenji (《田叔禾文集》), in twelve juan, are also associated with him; the one-juan Youguai lu (《幽怪錄》) and Aji zhuan (《阿寄傅》) are explicitly attributed to him.

Associations and family

He was a friend of Huang Shengzeng and wrote prefaces for works by Huangfu Xiao, Xia Yan, Shen Yingkui, Yu Xian, Xu Zonglu, Chen Zhu, Yan Shitai, and Gu Menggui; he also wrote a postscript for a work by Gu Menggui, while Wu Yipeng wrote his biography. His son was Tian Yiheng.