Xie Shang

Xie Shang (308– 14 June 357), courtesy name Renzu, was a military general, musician and writer of the Jin dynasty (266–420). He was a member of the Xie clan of Chen Commandery and was the elder cousin to the Jin prime minister Xie An. In the 350s, he participated in the expeditions to reclaim northern China for the Jin dynasty, his most important contribution being his recovery of the imperial seal, which had been lost in the north decades prior. Although a general, Shang was mostly known for his talents in art and music. He was one of the earlier known players of the pipa and helped popularize bells and stone chimes in southern China. Life and career Early life and career Xie Shang was born in Chen Commandery in 308 as the son of the Prefect of Yuzhang (豫章; around present-day Nanchang, Jiangxi), Xie Kun. His brother died when he was only seven years old, while his father died when he was around ten years old. On both of their funerals, he displayed maturity which puzzled the guests and captured their attention. At his brother's funeral, he was told by his father to seat with the guests. One of the guests openly remarked "This child is a Yan Hui in the seats," but Xie Shang rebuked, "How can you tell a Yan Hui without a Zhongni in the seats?" On his father's funeral in early 324, the Jin official Wen Jiao came and visit him to console him. Wen thought that Shang's mourning was excessive for a child of his age, and he saw great potential in him because of this. By the time he reached adulthood, Xie Shang was known for his intelligence and wits. He avoided vulgar acts, his worst instance only being that he loved wearing flashy clothes and pants which he later stopped after his uncles advised him to. The Prime Minister, Wang Dao, favoured him a lot as he reminded him of his relative Wang Rong, one of the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Groves. Because of this, Wang would call him "Little Anfeng (小安豐)" (Anfeng refers to Wang Rong's place of peerage). Once he was old enough, Shang inherited his father's title of Marquis of Xian. In the government, Xie Shang served a number of offices in the government and kept those offices for the rest of his life.