Zheng Hun

Historical Record

Zheng Hun, courtesy name Wengong, has his life and deeds recorded mainly in the official histories, which display his talent for governance and his upright, incorruptible character. In his early years, Zheng Mao—son of Zheng Hun's elder cousin Zheng Tai—fled the chaos of war to Huainan, where Yuan Shu treated him with great courtesy. Zheng Hun, however, perceived that Yuan Shu was destined to fall, and so urged Zheng Mao to leave. At the time Hua Xin served as Administrator of Yuzhang and had long been on good terms with Zheng Tai, so Zheng Hun brought his family across the Yangtze to take refuge with Hua Xin. Hearing of Zheng Hun's solid character, Cao Cao recruited him as an aide, and later promoted him to Chief of Xiacai and then Magistrate of Shaoling^[1].

At a time when the realm was not yet settled, the common people generally made light of farming, did not value production, and even, out of the hardship of their lives, abandoned their newborn children. In the places where he held office, Zheng Hun compelled the people to give up fishing and hunting and turn instead to farming and sericulture, opened up paddy fields on a large scale, and at the same time strictly forbade the abandoning of infants. At first the people complied out of fear of punishment; later, as their lives gradually grew prosperous, none abandoned their children any longer, and many of the boys and girls thus raised took "Zheng" as their surname. Zheng Hun was subsequently recruited as an aide to the Chancellor and promoted to Governor of the Left Capital Region (Zuo Pingyi)^[1].

While Governor of the Left Capital Region, the bandit Liang Xing and others gathered more than five thousand households of officials and commoners into a menace; the various counties could not resist them, and the people, all in fear, sought shelter beneath the commandery town. At the time some advised relocating to a defensible stronghold for self-protection, but Zheng Hun held that bandits such as Liang Xing would ultimately scatter, that their followers were mostly coerced, and that this was the moment to throw open the path to surrender and proclaim grace and trust; to defend a stronghold for self-protection would, on the contrary, show weakness. He therefore gathered the officials and commoners, repaired the city walls, and made ready the defenses. Zheng Hun then mobilized the people to pursue and arrest the bandits, made rewards and punishments clear, and made a covenant with the people that seven-tenths of the goods seized would go to those who captured the bandits. The people thus took eagerly to bandit-catching and seized many women and much property. Those bandits who had lost their wives because of the bandit-catching came one after another to surrender. Zheng Hun required them first to hand over the women they had plundered before they could ransom their own wives, thereby setting the bandits to plundering one another and scattering their factions. He further dispatched officials and commoners of grace and trust deep into the valleys to urge surrender, and those who surrendered came in an unbroken stream; he also had the magistrates of the various counties return to their seats to soothe the people. Out of fear, Liang Xing and the other bandits led their remaining followers to gather at the town of Fu. Cao Cao dispatched Xiahou Yuan to assist the commandery in the attack, and Zheng Hun led the officials and commoners to be the first to scale the walls, slaying Liang Xing and his faction. In addition, he subdued bandits such as Jin Fu and rescued the captured Chief of Xiayang, the Magistrate of Shaoling, and their officials and commoners. On learning that Zhao Qinglong had killed the Left Interior Secretary Cheng Xiu, Zheng Hun at once dispatched stalwarts to behead him. In all, more than four thousand households of people came over to him; from then on the mountain bandits were pacified and the people dwelt in peace. Zheng Hun was thereupon transferred to be Administrator of Shangdang^[2].

When Cao Cao campaigned against Hanzhong, he appointed Zheng Hun Intendant of the Capital (Jingzhao yin). For the newly relocated people Zheng Hun devised a method of settlement, pairing those who would engross land with the poor and weak, and the trustworthy with the orphaned and widowed; he encouraged farming and made prohibitions clear so as to expose the wicked. As a result the people settled into farming and banditry ceased. After the main army entered Hanzhong, Zheng Hun performed outstandingly in transporting army provisions. He also sent people to garrison-farm in Hanzhong, not one of whom deserted. Cao Cao therefore esteemed him all the more and again recruited him as an aide to the Chancellor. After Cao Pi ascended the throne, Zheng Hun was appointed Attendant Imperial Secretary, granted the additional rank of Commandant of the Imperial Equipage, and later promoted to Administrator successively of the two commanderies of Yangping and Pei. At the time the commandery's terrain was low-lying and often suffered flooding, and the people went hungry. At the boundary of the two counties of Xiao and Xiang, Zheng Hun built embankment ponds and opened up paddy fields. The people of the commandery at first thought this inconvenient, but Zheng Hun explained: "The terrain is low and suited to irrigation; in the end there will be lasting benefit of fish and rice—this is the root of enriching the people." He then personally led the officials and commoners and completed the works within a single winter. Thereafter came bountiful harvests year after year, the cultivated acreage increased year by year, the revenue from rents and taxes doubled, and the people benefited; they engraved a stone to extol him, calling it "Zheng's Embankment." Zheng Hun was then transferred to be Administrator successively of Shanyang and Wei commanderies, governing in much the same way as before. Considering, too, that the commandery's people lacked timber, he ordered them to plant elms as hedges and to add plantings of the five fruits. The elms all grew into hedges, and the five fruits yielded abundant harvests. On entering the bounds of Wei commandery, the villages were orderly and uniform, and the people's goods were ample and their lives prosperous^[3].

In the Novel

The *Romance of the Three Kingdoms* gives no detailed literary portrayal of Zheng Hun; his deeds go unmentioned in the novel. It is therefore impossible to draw from the novel's material his personality traits, key dialogue, or unique episodes. In the novel Zheng Hun is an absent figure, his historical achievements and incorruptible image transmitted mainly through the official histories.

Key Relationships

* The Cao Wei camp (serves): Zheng Hun held important posts under Cao Cao, from aide and county magistrate to Intendant of the Capital and Administrator; his governing record won deep approval from both Cao Cao and Cao Pi, and he was an important regional official and adviser of the Cao Wei regime^[1].
* Yuan Shu's Faction (defected_from): Zheng Hun foresaw that Yuan Shu was destined to fall and urged his cousin Zheng Mao to leave Yuan Shu, displaying his political foresight^[1].
* Hua Xin (friend_of): While in flight Zheng Hun took refuge with Hua Xin; the two had long been on good terms, and Hua Xin gave him aid^[1].
* Liang Xing (enemy_of): While Governor of the Left Capital Region, Zheng Hun successfully pacified the bandit Liang Xing and others, slaying Liang Xing and bringing peace to the local people^[2].
* Jin Fu, Zhao Qinglong (enemy_of): Zheng Hun also subdued Jin Fu and beheaded Zhao Qinglong, showing his outstanding ability to quell local rebellions^[2].
* The common people (benefactor_of): Wherever Zheng Hun held office, he promoted farming, built waterworks, and pacified bandits, so that the people dwelt in peace and held him in deep affection; some even took "Zheng" as their surname and engraved stone tablets to extol his merits^[1][3].

Iconic Scenes

* Urging departure from Yuan Shu, taking refuge with Hua Xin: Zheng Hun perceived the political situation in which Yuan Shu was destined to fall, decisively urged his cousin Zheng Mao to leave, and crossed the Yangtze to take refuge with his old friend Hua Xin. This act not only displayed his far-sighted vision but also laid the foundation for his later service to Cao Cao, marking the beginning of his political career^[1].
* Compelling farming, forbidding the abandoning of infants: As Chief of Xiacai and Magistrate of Shaoling, facing a realm not yet settled and a people in distress, Zheng Hun compelled the people to give up fishing and hunting and turn instead to farming and sericulture, opened up paddy fields, and at the same time strictly forbade the abandoning of infants. Though coercive at first, these measures ultimately brought the people prosperity—so much so that some took "Zheng" as their surname—fully displaying his people-first, pragmatic style of governance^[1].
* Throwing open the path to surrender, pacifying Liang Xing: While Governor of the Left Capital Region, faced with the menace of the bandit Liang Xing and others, Zheng Hun overruled the crowd; rather than advocating self-protection, he adopted the strategy of "throwing open the path to surrender and proclaiming grace and trust," while organizing the people to repair the walls and pursue the bandits, ultimately pacifying Liang Xing, bringing more than four thousand households over to him, and restoring local order. This displayed his superb military and political skill and his governing ideal of "preserving grace and trust and throwing open the path to surrender"^[2].
* Building Zheng's Embankment, benefiting the multitude: As Administrator of Yangping and Pei, faced with flooding and famine, Zheng Hun, ignoring the people's objections, personally led the officials and commoners to build embankment ponds and open up paddy fields. The works were completed in winter, after which came bountiful harvests year after year; the people's rents and taxes doubled and their lives grew prosperous, and in gratitude for his merit they engraved a stone to extol him, calling it "Zheng's Embankment." This is not only a display of Zheng Hun's outstanding talent for waterworks but also an iconic achievement of his bringing benefit to a region and improving the people's livelihood^[3].
* Ordering the planting of elms and fruits, beautifying the countryside: As Administrator of Shanyang and Wei commanderies, considering that the people lacked timber, Zheng Hun ordered them to plant elms as hedges and to add plantings of the five fruits. This measure not only solved a real difficulty for the people but also made the villages orderly and uniform and the people's goods ample, displaying his meticulous style of governance and his all-around concern for the people's welfare^[3].