Chen Yanzhong

Chen Yanzhong, courtesy name Xiangwu, a native of Huaining in Jiangnan. His family was poor; for twelve generations they had pursued Confucian learning, yet no notable fame had yet appeared. From childhood Xiangwu studied, helping his mother with work to support his schooling. The elder Ta Gongren woman supported the family by needlework to make ends meet; at night she opened the study hall and instructed Xiangwu and his brothers to recite beside her. His mother warned, “Our family earns its living from books; do not let the coming generations fall behind.” Xiangwu took his mother’s words to heart, and pressed forward with diligence and self-discipline.

In the late Xianfeng era, the bandits (the Zhe bandits) attacked Anqing; the old families in the city fled. Xiangwu’s father and elder brother laid down their quills and went to war; Xiangwu and his younger cousin fled to the countryside, their home left to emptiness and life grew hard. After the turmoil, the royal troops recovered Anqing, and Xiangwu entered the county school as a student. His mother was pleased by this and shed tears at parting. When he reached Ningguo, the Ningguo Prefect Sun admired Xiangwu’s reputation and invited him to serve as a Western Lecturer; Xiangwu declined because his mother was ill. By the time he arrived at Ningguo, the Ta Gongren had already died; upon hearing the news, Xiangwu rushed back to attend the funeral.

Xiangwu kept his mother’s example and educated his younger brother with meticulous care. In Ningguo, Xiangwu’s studies advanced and his literary reputation grew; scholars from all directions came to study. He treated poor students by providing them drink and food, teaching and guiding them widely; he became the source of a well-known school in Anhui, with about half of the province’s renowned literati tracing their lineage to his school. Xiangwu valued practical study and held grand aspirations; he endured repeated hardships but persisted in teaching and learning. Due to changes in the prefectural administration, he was sent to Jiangsu with grain; the exam clerks rated him highly, and even the high officials looked on with favor.

In the autumn of the seventh year of the Guangxu era (1881), a plague broke out in Suzhou Prefecture. Chen Xiangwu, at that time serving as a tutor in the house of the Suzhou garrison commander Dou Rutian, contracted the illness; he died during the Mid-Autumn Festival in Suzhou City at the Huaining Guild Hall, aged 34.

Relatives: his father was Chen Zhangxu; his brothers were Chen Yanfan, Chen Yanzao, and Chen Yanshu. His issue included Chen Qingyuan, whose official post was Jian Sheng, style name Mengji; and Chen Qingtong, whose official post was Qian Sheng.