Shang Rang

Shang Rang (尚讓) (died 884) was a major follower of Huang Chao, an agrarian rebel leader against the rule of the Chinese Tang dynasty and carried prominent titles after Huang declared himself the emperor of a new state of Qi. As Huang neared defeat in 884, Shang turned against him and submitted to the Tang general Shi Pu and participated in the final destruction of Huang's army. Shang himself was later killed by Shi.

Background It is not known when Shang Rang was born. He had at least one older brother, Shang Junzhang (尚君長), who, along with Wang Xianzhi, rose in rebellion against the Tang dynasty in 874 at Changyuan (長垣, in modern Xinxiang, Henan). Shang Rang probably followed his brother in this rebellion, and he, either at that time or subsequently, became a follower of Wang's as well.

Service under Wang Xianzhi As of 876, Shang Rang was a major agrarian rebel commander, as it is known that that year, Yang Fuguang the eunuch monitor of the army Emperor Xizong sent against Wang Xianzhi, reported that Shang Rang had occupied Mount Chaya (查牙山, in modern Zhumadian, Henan), forcing the imperial forces sent against him to withdraw to Deng Prefecture (鄧州, in modern Nanyang, Henan).

Yang, however, continued to negotiate with Wang Xianzhi, and in late 877, the talks had progressed to such a point that Wang Xianzhi sent Shang Junzhang to Yang's camp to negotiate further. However, the Tang general Song Wei (宋威), who was against the negotiations, ambushed Shang Junzhang's party and took him and the other rebels on the way to Yang's camp captive. He then submitted a report to Emperor Xizong claiming to have captured Shang Junzhang and the others in battle. Despite Yang's petition contradicting Song's claims and clarifying that Shang Junzhang and the others were negotiating, Emperor Xizong executed Shang Junzhang and the others, causing Wang Xianzhi to break off the negotiations. When Huang entered Chang'an, Shang declared to the people of Chang'an:

By spring 883, Tang forces, with the Shatuo chieftain Li Keyong joining the Tang cause, were again pressuring the Qi forces at Chang'an. Shang commanded some 150,000 Qi soldiers and engaged the forces of Li Keyong, Wang Chongrong, Wang Chucun, and Yang Fuguang. The Qi forces were crushed. Meanwhile, the Qi generals Wang Fan (王璠) and Huang Kui (黃揆, Huang Chao's brother) recaptured Hua Prefecture (華州, in modern Weinan, Shaanxi), but Li Keyong then put it under siege. Huang Chao thus sent Shang to Hua Prefecture, trying to lift the siege. Soon thereafter, however, Huang Chao abandoned the Chang'an region entirely and fled east, and it appeared that Shang followed him.

What happened to Shang thereafter was not clearly stated in historical resources, but at some point, it was said that Shi killed him, and his wife Lady Liu became a concubine of Shi's—yet later becoming Zhu Quanzhong's concubine, and then the wife of Zhu's trusted subordinate Jing Xiang.

Notes and references

Old Book of Tang, vols. 252, 253, 254, 255, 256.