Ministers › Diplomat / Envoy
Zhang Sheng
Deputy to the Han envoy Su Wu whose secret part in Yu Chang's plot doomed the mission and who then surrendered to the Xiongnu.
On a road beside a desert gateway, a camel train carries a lidded chest and rolled bundles while travellers walk along the path; a large sailing ship lies in the harbour at the right, a stone waymark stands by the road, and dunes and mountains fill the distance.
Also known as Deputy Envoy Zhang Sheng
- Roles
- Diplomat / Envoy
Zhang Sheng was deputy envoy when Su Wu led a Han embassy to the Xiongnu in 100 BCE. The Prince of Gou and Yu Chang were plotting to abduct the Chanyu's mother and flee to Han; Yu Chang confided in Zhang Sheng, who encouraged him and gave him goods without telling Su Wu. When the plot collapsed Zhang confessed to Su Wu, whose embassy was thereby implicated and detained. Under Wei Lu's interrogation, with a sword raised over him, Zhang Sheng begged to surrender and stayed among the Xiongnu, a foil to Su Wu's loyalty in the Biography of Su Wu.
Life and times
- UnknownBorn
Hanactive c. 100 BCE - c. 100 BCESu Wu's Captivity Among the Xiongnu
Sent as envoy to the Xiongnu, Su Wu was detained, herded sheep by the Northern Sea without submitting, and returned to Han after nineteen years. - UnknownDied
