Ministers › Remonstrators
Lu Wenshu
Western Han official, courtesy name Changjun, from Julu, who as a boy copied texts onto cut rushes while herding sheep; on Emperor Xuan's accession he submitted the Shang De Huan Xing Shu urging mercy in punishment, and rose to Governor of Linhuai.
At dawn in a palace courtyard, a large drum hangs in a small roofed frame beside a red pillar, with a bound bundle of scrolls on a low stand in front; a stone balustrade leads toward a large hall in the mist, and a row of tiny people stands far away.
Also known as Courtesy name Changjun
- Roles
- Remonstrators
Lu Wenshu, courtesy name Changjun, came from Dongli in Julu commandery (southwest of modern Pingxiang, Hebei); his dates are unknown. As a boy he herded sheep and cut marsh rushes to write on, then studied law and served as a prison clerk and judge's clerk, and was recommended as filial and incorrupt, becoming assistant magistrate of Shanyi and acting judicial clerk. At the start of Emperor Xuan's reign he submitted a memorial urging that virtue be honoured and punishment eased, criticising harsh trials; this Shang De Huan Xing Shu is given in full in the Hanshu. He later served as steward to the Prince of Guangyang, assistant to the Right Metropolitan Governor, and Governor of Linhuai. His life is recorded in the Hanshu's collective biography of Jia, Zou, Mei and Lu.
Life and times
Dates Dates unknown; submitted his memorial at the start of Emperor Xuan's reign (74 BCE)