Zhou Bida

Life

Accounts differ over the year of his jinshi degree: one gives Shaoxing 21 (1151), another Shaoxing 27; in Shaoxing 27 he also passed the erudite-and-literary examination, ranking first. He was appointed to the post of sihu canjun at Huizhou, and served as the xianwei at Yudu, supervisor of the Taiping Huimin Heji Bureau, professor at the Jian'kang Prefectural School, and taixue lu. In Shaoxing 30 (1160) he was summoned as taixue lu and rose through the Office for Classifying Imperial Governance, the Secretariat Editorial Office, the National History Academy, the Censorate, and the Qiju Lang post, while also serving as acting Zhongshu Sheren and acting Jishizhong. After Xiaozong's accession, he submitted ten proposals addressing current abuses; as acting Jishizhong he remonstrated without sparing the powerful, and in Longxing 1 (1163) was assigned to fengci service after objecting to the appointments of Long Danyuan and Zeng Di as 知閤門事.

In Qiandao 4 (1168) he was recalled as prefect of Nanjiàn; in year 6 (1170) he became Vice Director of the Palace Library and concurrently served in the Hanlin Academy, and in year 8 (1172) he was again placed in fengci service while acting as Zhongshu Sheren. In Chunxi 2 (1175) he became Academician of the Fuwen Pavilion and palace lecturer, eventually rising to Minister of Personnel and concurrently Hanlin Academician and Reader-in-Waiting; in year 7 (1180) he became Counsellor of State, and in year 9 (1182) Chief Councillor of the Bureau of Military Affairs, later serving as its Commissioner and creating a testing system for the armies. In Chunxi 14 (1187) he became Right Chancellor, and in year 16 (1189) Left Chancellor; during Guangzong's reign he was enfeoffed as Duke of Yiguo.

The date of his appointment to Tan Prefecture is disputed: one account places his departure from the chancellery and appointment there in Chunxi 16 (1189), while another places his appointment as Academician of the Guanwendian and prefect of Tan in Shaoxi 2 (1191); in Shaoxi 4 (1193) he was transferred to Longxing Prefecture. In the first year of Qingyuan (1195), under Ningzong, he retired as Grand Academician of the Guanwendian and Duke of Yiguo; soon afterward Han Tuozhou denounced him as the chief culprit in the “false learning” case. He died in Jia'tai 4 (1204) at the age of seventy-nine; he was posthumously granted the name Wenzhong in Kaixi 3 (1207), while another account says that he was awarded the title Grand Preceptor.

Writings and associations

A skilled literary writer, Zhou Bida maintained close friendships with Lu You, Fan Chengda, and Yang Wanli, and wrote postscripts for books by Fan Chengda and Yang Wanli. He was credited with eighty-one works and with 《平園集》 in 200 juan; later editors assembled 《益國周文忠公全集》 in 200 juan, including 《省齋文稿》, 《平園續稿》, 《省齋別稿》, and 《二老堂詩話》 among twenty-four works. Other titles include 《玉堂類稿》, 《玉堂雜記》, 《省齋集》, 《文忠集》, 《玉蕊辨證》, 《淳熙玉堂雜記》, 《二老堂雜誌》, 《辛巳親征錄》, 《壬午龍飛錄》, 《思陵錄》, 《閒居錄》, 《汎舟錄》, 《汎舟遊山錄》, 《周文忠公奏義》, 《歷官表奏》, and 《奉詔錄》. The bibliography also includes 《吳郡諸山錄》, 《九華山錄》, 《廬山錄、後錄》, 《癸未歸廬陵日計》, 《乾道庚寅奏事錄》, 《壬辰南歸錄》, 《益公題跋》, 《詞科舊稿》, 《夜垣類稿》, 《政府應制稿》, 《承明集》, 《書稿》, 《近體樂府遺詩》, 《雜著述》, 《廬陵志》, 《文忠公集：二百卷》, 《玉藥辨證一卷》, and 《鑾坡錄：一卷》。