Page:Eminent Chinese Of The Ch’ing Period - Hummel - 1943 - Vol. 1.pdf/463

Rh general of Liaotung. He served there for seven years more and witnessed the gradual expansion of Chien-chou under Nurhaci whose life he had spared in 1583. According to some accounts, Nurhaci owed to Li not only his life but much of his early education in military affairs. At any rate, Li made possible Nurhaci's initiation into the rights and powers of a tribal chief of Chien-chou, and Li saw Nurhaci occupy territory which he himself had once controlled. He could not, however, foresee what great power Nurhaci would ultimately wield. After his rank was raised to Grand Tutor Li again retired to Peking where he lived until his death at the age of ninety-three (sui).

Of Li Ch'êng-liang's five sons, all of whom held high military posts and owed their start in life to their father's fame, the eldest, Li Ju-sung 李如松, stood out as a brave soldier. In 1592 he was commander-in-chief of the armies in Shensi which subdued the rebellion of a Mongol chief at Ninghsia. After some hard fighting the rebellion was suppressed and Li Ju-sung was ordered to go immediately to Korea to resist the Japanese invaders. He reached there early in 1593 and helped gradually to liberate most of that country. Late in that year he made a truce with the Japanese who held the southern seacoast of Korea, and he withdrew most of his forces early in 1594. In 1598 he served as brigade general of Liaotung and was killed in action with the Tumet Mongols. He was canonized as Chung-lieh 忠烈 and was posthumously given the rank of Ning-yüan Po.

The post of brigade-general of Liaotung was then given to Li Ch'êng-liang's fifth son, Li Ju-mei 李如梅, who held it until he was superseded in 1618 by Li Ch'êng-liang's second son, Li Ju-po 李如柏. The latter had fought in the war against the Japanese in Korea (1593), and had served for some time as brigade-general of Kweichow and later of Ninghsia. After a retirement of more than twenty years he was recalled to service. In 1619 he was in command of one of the four armies under in the disastrous invasion of the territory of Nurhaci. After his defeat he was put in prison awaiting trial, and there he committed suicide. His younger brother, Li Ju-chên 李如楨, the third son of Li Ch'êng-liang, was appointed brigade-general in command of the forces in Liaotung. In 1619 Li Ju-chên was accused of cowardice for failure to rescue his ancestral home, T'ieh-ling, from the onslaught of Nurhaci, and was sentenced to imprisonment awaiting execution. Thus ended the continuous domination of the military power in Liaotung by Li Ch'êng-liang and his family, after a tenure of some fifty years. When the inheritor of the earldom, Li Tsun-tsu 李遵祖, a grandson of Li Ju-sung, was killed in 1644 at the fall of Peking, Li Ch'êng-liang's branch of the family was no longer powerful.

In the Ch'ing period the descendants of the above-mentioned Li Ch'un-mao gained prominence, but his branch of the family lost heavily in 1619 when T'ieh-ling fell to the Manchus. Ten men and six women lost their lives, some of the younger men being spared to serve under the Manchus. Contrary to custom, these men not only did not avenge the death of their forebears but served the Manchus vigorously and rose to be high officials. Li Ssŭ-chung 李思忠, a grandnephew of Li Ch'êng-liang, was captured by the Manchus in 1618. A year later his parents were killed by the Manchus, but he continued to serve them, and in 1621 brought many of his clansmen over to Nurhaci's side. He became a baron in 1631, and a member of the Chinese Plain Yellow Banner in 1642. In 1644 he followed to conquer China, and from 1646 to 1654 served as commander of the army in Shensi. His third son, Li Hsien-tsu 李顯祖, served as provincial commander-in-chief of Kwangtung (1667–69) and of Chekiang (1669–75). The rank of baron was inherited by Li Hsien-tsu's branch of the family. Li Ssŭ-chung's second son, Li Yin-tsu 李蔭祖, served from the age of twenty-six to thirty-two (sui) as governor-general of Chihli, Honan and Shantung (1654–58), and of Hupeh and Hunan (1658–60). He left a collection of memorials, entitled 總督奏議 Tsungtu tsou-i, 6 chüan, printed in 1680 (a copy of this work is in the Library of Congress). His son, Li Ping 李鈵, helped to transport grain to Mongolia in 1696 (see under , 1638–1700) and served as governor of Shantung (1698–1700). Li Yin-tsu's cousin, Li Hui-tsu 李輝祖, rose to be governor-general of Hupeh and Hunan (1698–99). Many other members of this branch of the Li family held high offices under the Manchus.

One member of this family became a famous poet and writer, namely Li K'ai 李鍇 451