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554 empire. After the death of the Emperor she became Regent for her youthful son, known in history as Hui Ti. To make the throne secure, she poisoned the Prince of Chao, another sou of the late Emperor by a concubine named the Lady Ch'i; and also put his mother to death with shameful tortures, and called her own son to view the death-struggle of this unhappy woman as she lay expiring in a latrine. This sight affected the young Emperor do deeply that he lost self-control, and ga?e himself up to drinking and debauchery; whereupon his mother usurped all power, and reigned for the rest of her life as the legitimate sovereign of the empire. After her death there was an attempt by members of the family, all of whom had been raised to high rank, to possess themselves of the throne. Their forces were dispersed by Chou P'o, and Liu Hdng was saluted as Emperor.

Lii Hsiang ) (T. ). 8th cent. A.D. A native of Ching-chou in Eansuh, whose father was absent at a distance when he was born. Brought up by his maternal grandmother, he devoted himself to the "grass" character and became so expert that he could write 100 characters in a ring without taking off his pen. The strokes were all so fine that his style came to be known as the "brocade" style. In 722 he was admitted to the Han-lin College, and wrote poems denouncing the Emperor's annual search for beautiful girls and also the Imperial hunting expeditions. He rose to be Vice President in the Board of Works; and one day, returning from Court, he espied an old man in the street who greatly resembled his father. Stopping to speak to him, he found out that the stranger really was his father; whereupon he jumped off his horse, and clasping the old man's knees, with tears of joy carried him away to his home.

Lti Hsien-chi S (T.  ). A.D. 1800-1853. As Censor in 1842 he gained a great reputation by his excellent