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Jiang Ji (died 18 May 249), courtesy name Zitong, was an official and military general of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Born in the late Eastern Han dynasty, Jiang Ji started his career as a low-level official in his native Yang Province before becoming a subordinate of Cao Cao, the warlord who controlled the central government towards the end of the Eastern Han dynasty. After the end of the Eastern Han dynasty, he served in the state of Cao Wei through the reigns of the first three emperors – Cao Pi, Cao Rui and Cao Fang – and held various appointments in the military before rising to Grand Commandant, one of the top positions in the central government. During his service in Wei, he was known for being candid in giving advice to the emperor on various issues, including consolidating power, halting labour-intensive construction projects, and officials' abuses of power. In February 249, he joined the regent Sima Yi in staging a successful coup d'état against his co-regent Cao Shuang, but died from illness a few months later.
When Jiang Ji was serving in Yang Province, he was known for frequently consuming alcohol. One day, Shi Miao (時苗), the magistrate of Shou County in Yang Province, came to the provincial office to meet Jiang Ji but the latter was drunk. An angry Shi Miao then left. After he returned to Shouchun, he made a wooden statue, labelled it "Jiang Ji the drunkard" (酒徒蔣濟), placed it in front of a wall, and fired arrows at it day and night.(時苗字德胄，鉅鹿人也。 ... 出為壽春令，令行風靡。揚州治在其縣，時蔣濟為治中。苗以初至往謁濟，濟素嗜酒，適會其醉，不能見苗。苗恚恨還，刻木為人，署曰「酒徒蔣濟」，置之牆下，旦夕射之。) Pei Songzhi's annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 23.
In the meantime, Jiang Ji secretly suggested to Liu Fu to spread false news that Zhang Xi was leading 40,000 troops to reinforce Hefei, and that the reinforcements had reached Yulou County (雩婁縣; north of present-day Jinzhai County, Anhui).(濟乃密白刺史偽得喜書，云步騎四萬已到雩婁，遣主簿迎喜。) Sanguozhi vol. 14. Liu Fu agreed and sent three messengers to bring fake letters out of Hefei. Only one of the three returned; the other two were captured by Sun Quan's forces. Sun Quan saw the letters and mistakenly believed that enemy reinforcements were approaching, so he ordered his troops to burn down their camp and retreat back to Jiangdong. The siege on Hefei was thus lifted.(三部使齎書語城中守將，一部得入城，二部為賊所得。權信之，遽燒圍走，城用得全。) Sanguozhi vol. 14.
Jiang Ji replied: "At the time, you were weak while your enemy was strong. If you didn't relocate those people, you would lose them to your enemy. However, since you defeated Yuan Shao, conquered Liucheng in the north, and advanced south towards the Yangtze and Hanshui rivers and Jing Province, the Han Empire has trembled before your might and the people no longer think about opposing you. As people are emotionally attached to their homes, they wouldn't want to relocate elsewhere. If you force them to, they will feel fearful and uneasy."(濟對曰：「是時兵弱賊彊，不徙必失之。自破袁紹，北拔柳城，南向江、漢，荊州交臂，威震天下，民無他志。然百姓懷土，實不樂徙，懼必不安。」) Sanguozhi vol. 14.
Cao Cao ignored Jiang Ji's advice and tried to force the people of Huainan to relocate. Jiang Ji was proven right as over 100,000 people from Huainan fled south across the Yangtze and settled in Jiangdong.(太祖不從，而江、淮間十餘萬衆，皆驚走吳。) Sanguozhi vol. 14.
Some years later, when Jiang Ji visited Cao Cao in Ye (in present-day Handan, Hebei), Cao Cao laughed and told him: "I wanted to move those people further away from the enemy but ended up scaring them away instead."(後濟使詣鄴，太祖迎見大笑曰：「本但欲使避賊，乃更驅盡之。」) Sanguozhi vol. 14.
On one occasion, when Cao Cao heard that some people have formally accused Jiang Ji of being the mastermind behind a treasonous plot, he wrote to Yu Jin and Feng Ren (封仁): "How could Jiang Ji be involved in something like this? If this really happened, it means that I am not a good judge of character. I am certain that the people are trying to stir up trouble by making such a false accusation." He also sent them a copy of his memo to Jiang Ji, and pressured them to throw out the case against Jiang Ji.(民有誣告濟為謀叛主率者，太祖聞之，指前令與左將軍于禁、沛相封仁等曰：「蔣濟寧有此事！有此事，吾為不知人也。此必愚民樂亂，妄引之耳。」促理出之。) Sanguozhi vol. 14.
Jiang Ji was later reassigned to be a clerk in the office of the Imperial Chancellor, the position held by Cao Cao in the Han central government. Cao Cao sent a memo to Jiang Ji as follows: "When Gao Yao served under Emperor Shun, he caused those who were unkind and uncharitable to shun away. I place my hopes in a virtuous subordinate like you to uphold fairness."(辟為丞相主簿西曹屬。令曰：「舜舉臯陶，不仁者遠；臧否得中，望於賢屬矣。」) Sanguozhi vol. 14.
Jiang Ji and Sima Yi advised Cao Cao: "Yu Jin's defeat was not due to flaws in our defences, nor would it significantly affect us. Moving the imperial capital is showing our weakness to the enemy. It will cause panic in the regions around the Huai River and Mian rivers. Sun Quan and Liu Bei seem close to each other, but they actually don't trust each other. Sun Quan will feel very uneasy upon seeing Guan Yu's victory, so we should incite him to attack Guan Yu's base in Jing Province. This will lift the siege on Fancheng."(司馬宣王及濟說太祖曰：「于禁等為水所沒，非戰攻之失，於國家大計未足有損。劉備、孫權，外親內踈，關羽得志，權必不願也。可遣人勸躡其後，許割江南以封權，則樊圍自解。」) Sanguozhi vol. 14.(帝諫曰：「禁等為水所沒，非戰守之所失，於國家大計未有所損，而便遷都，既示敵以弱，又淮沔之人大不安矣。孫權、劉備，外親內踈，羽之得意，權所不願也。可喻權所，令掎其後，則樊圍自解。」) Jin Shu vol. 1.
Cao Cao heeded Jiang Ji and Sima Yi's advice and did not relocate the imperial capital. In the winter of 219–220, Sun Quan ordered his general Lü Meng to lead his troops to attack the key bases of Liu Bei's territories in Jing Province: Gong'an and Jiangling County counties. Guan Yu, who was totally caught off guard by Lü Meng's invasion, lost all of Liu Bei's territories in Jing Province. He was eventually captured in an ambush and executed by Sun Quan's forces.(太祖如其言。權聞之，即引兵西襲公安、江陵。羽遂見禽。) Sanguozhi vol. 14.(魏武從之。權果遣將呂蒙西襲公安，拔之，羽遂為蒙所獲。) Jin Shu vol. 1.
After his coronation as emperor, Cao Pi appointed Jiang Ji as East General of the Household (東中郎將).(及踐阼，出為東中郎將。) Sanguozhi vol. 14. When Jiang Ji sought permission to remain in the central government, Cao Pi denied him permission and issued an imperial decree to him as follows: "Emperor Gaozu once sang, 'Where will I find brave men to guard the four corners of my land?' The Empire is not peaceful yet. We need capable officials to guard the borders. It is still not too late for you to retire when the borders are peaceful."(濟請留，詔曰：「高祖歌曰『安得猛士守四方』！天下未寧，要須良臣以鎮邊境。如其無事，乃還鳴玉，未為後也。」) Sanguozhi vol. 14. Jiang Ji later wrote the (萬機論; Myriad Subtleties), a treatise on government, and presented it to Cao Pi, who applauded his work. Jiang Ji was subsequently recalled to the central government to serve as a Mounted Regular Attendant (散騎常侍).(濟上萬機論，帝善之。入為散騎常侍。) Sanguozhi vol. 14.
Jiang Ji replied, "I don't see anything good. I only see words suggesting an empire's downfall."(濟對曰：「未有他善，但見亡國之語耳。」) Sanguozhi vol. 14. When a shocked Cao Pi asked him to explain, Jiang Ji said, "History has warned us against 'doing as you as please'. The ancients also cautioned us that 'the Son of Heaven should not speak in jest'. I hope that Your Majesty will be more careful with your words!"(帝忿然作色而問其故，濟具以荅，因曰：「夫『作威作福』，書之明誡。『天子無戲言』，古人所慎。惟陛下察之！」) Sanguozhi vol. 14. Cao Pi understood what Jiang Ji meant and immediately rescinded his edict.(於是帝意解，遣追取前詔。) Sanguozhi vol. 14.
After Cao Ren died in 223, Cao Pi reassigned Jiang Ji to serve as East General of the Household (東中郎將) again and put him temporarily in charge of the units which used to be under Cao Ren's command.(仁薨，復以濟為東中郎將，代領其兵。) Sanguozhi vol. 14. He sent an edict to Jiang Ji as follows: "You are well-versed in both civil and military affairs, and you are loyal and passionate. As I know that you have the ambition of crossing the river and conquering Wu, I hereby put you in this position of military command."(詔曰：「卿兼資文武，志節忼愾，常有超越江湖吞吳會之志，故復授將率之任。」) Sanguozhi vol. 14. However, not long later, he removed Jiang Ji from his command and reassigned him to serve as a Master of Writing (尚書) in the imperial secretariat.(頃之，徵為尚書。) Sanguozhi vol. 14.
During this time, Jiang Ji wrote a memorial to the emperor to inform him that the harsh winter weather made it difficult for vessels to sail through the waterways into the Yangtze. He also wrote an essay, "San Zhou Lun" (三州論; "Essay on the Three Provinces"), to indirectly persuade Cao Pi to turn back, but the emperor ignored him and ordered his vessels to sail to Guangling Commandery anyway.(車駕幸廣陵，濟表水道難通，又上三州論以諷帝。帝不從， ...) Sanguozhi vol. 14. At Guangling Commandery, after seeing the weather and the Wu defences, the emperor gave up on his plan for invasion and retreated. The Wu general Sun Shao seized this opportunity to send his subordinate Gao Shou (高壽) and 500 men to launch a night raid on Cao Pi's convoy. They succeeded in their attempt and even made off with the parasol of Cao Pi's chariot.
As the Wei naval fleet was stranded due to the weather, some officials proposed that the troops go ashore, break up into agricultural colonies, and start growing crops to ensure that they have adequate food supplies (i.e., the tuntian system). Jiang Ji, however, strongly objected to this approach as he thought that it was too dangerous because the colonies would be too near the Chao Lake to the east and the Huai River to the north, so the Wu forces could take advantage of the high tide period to attack them.(... 於是戰船數千皆滯不得行。議者欲就留兵屯田，濟以為東近湖，北臨淮，若水盛時，賊易為寇，不可安屯。) Sanguozhi vol. 14.
Cao Pi heeded Jiang Ji's advice and brought along his troops as they retreated by land. By the time they reached the Jing Lake (精湖), the tide had subsided so Cao Pi left behind all the vessels for Jiang Ji to dispose of them.(帝從之，車駕即發。還到精湖，水稍盡，盡留船付濟。) Sanguozhi vol. 14. As the vessels were all scattered along the waterways, Jiang Ji ordered his men to dig an additional four or five connecting waterways, gather all the vessels in one location, and build a dam there to block the flow of water from the lake. When the dam was full, they opened it and allowed the force of the water to flush all the vessels out of the waterways into the Huai River.(船本歷適數百里中，濟更鑿地作四五道，蹴船令聚；豫作土豚遏斷湖水，皆引後船，一時開遏入淮中。) Sanguozhi vol. 14.
After Cao Pi returned to the Wei capital, Luoyang, he told Jiang Ji: "I have to tell you something. I originally wanted to burn down half of all the vessels in the Shanyang Pool, but you disposed of those vessels and even managed to return to Qiao Commandery around the same time as me. Every piece of advice you gave me thus far is in line with my thoughts. From now on, if we have any plans on attacking the enemy, I hope you will share your views and participate in the discussions."(帝還洛陽，謂濟曰：「事不可不曉。吾前決謂分半燒舩於山陽池中，卿於後致之，略與吾俱至譙。又每得所陳，實入吾意。自今討賊計畫，善思論之。」) Sanguozhi vol. 14.
At the time, Cao Xiu and his army had fallen into a Wu ambush at Shiting (石亭; near present-day Qianshan County, Anhui) and suffered heavy casualties in addition to losing weapons, armour and equipment.(會休軍已敗，盡棄器仗輜重退還。) Sanguozhi vol. 14. Just when the Wu forces were preparing to trap Cao Xiu and his surviving men at Jiakou (夾口), Wei reinforcements showed up so the Wu forces retreated and thus Cao Xiu managed to survive. Jiang Ji was subsequently reassigned to serve as Central Protector of the Army (中護軍).(吳欲塞夾口，遇救兵至，是以官軍得不沒。遷為中護軍。) Sanguozhi vol. 14.
In response, Cao Rui sent Jiang Ji an edict which read: "Rulers rely on subjects of strong character. (Jiang) Ji is well-versed in both civil and military affairs and he performs his duties faithfully. Every time there is a discussion on major issues, he will either send in a memorial or speak up to express his views. I am very impressed by his initiative and loyalty."(詔曰：「夫骨鯁之臣，人主之所仗也。濟才兼文武，服勤盡節，每軍國大事，輒有奏議，忠誠奮發，吾甚壯之。」) Sanguozhi vol. 14. Cao Rui then promoted Jiang Ji to General Who Protects the Army (護軍將軍) and granted him an additional appointment as a Mounted Regular Attendant (散騎常侍).(就遷為護軍將軍，加散騎常侍。) Sanguozhi vol. 14.
When Jiang Ji heard about it, he wrote a memorial to Cao Rui to dissuade the emperor from attacking Liaodong:
Cao Rui ignored Jiang Ji's advice and ordered Tian Yu to go ahead and attack Liaodong. Tian Yu and his troops pulled back without any success from the campaign.(帝不聽，豫行竟無成而還。) Sima Biao's Zhanlue annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 14.
Jiang Ji wrote a memorial to Cao Rui as follows:
In response, Cao Rui sent Jiang Ji an edict which read: "If I did not have you, General Who Protects the Army, I will not be able to hear such advice."(詔曰：「微護軍，吾弗聞斯言也。」) Sanguozhi vol. 14.
Jiang Ji replied: "He knows that our defences are strong and that he won't gain any advantage. If he sends his forces deep into enemy territory, it won't be a sustainable campaign; if he attacks only the periphery, it will be a waste of manpower and resources for him. Sun Quan doesn't even care when his sons and brothers are in danger, so why would he care about a distant ally who has humiliated him before? The reason why he is spreading news that he will be sending aid to Gongsun Yuan is because he wants to confuse us. He will only take action if we fail to defeat Gongsun Yuan. However, as we are separated by land and water from Liaodong, if we attack Liaodong, we must ensure that we conquer it swiftly, or else Sun Quan might send lightly armed forces to launch small raids at our borders. This is something we should be wary of."(濟曰：「彼知官備以固，利不可得，深入則非力所能，淺入則勞而無獲；權雖子弟在危，猶將不動，況異域之人，兼以往者之辱乎！今所以外揚此聲者，譎其行人疑於我，我之不克，兾折後事已耳。然沓渚之間，去淵尚遠，若大軍相持，事不速決，則權之淺規，或能輕兵掩襲，未可測也。」) Han Jin Chunqiu annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 14.
In his annotations to Jiang Ji's biography in the Sanguozhi, Pei Songzhi recorded that Jiang Ji claimed that there was a line on Cao Teng's tombstone which read: "The Cao clan originated from Zhu". Pei Songzhi also noted that the Book of Wei (魏書), the official history of the Cao Wei state, confirmed Jiang Ji's claim.(臣松之案蔣濟立郊議稱曹騰碑文云「曹氏族出自邾」，魏書述曹氏胤緒亦如之。) Pei Songzhi's annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 14.
However, Pei Songzhi also pointed out that there was evidence which contradicted Jiang Ji's claim. When Cao Cao wrote his own family history, he mentioned that he descended from Cao Shu Zhenduo (曹叔振鐸), the first ruler of the vassal state of Cao and a member of the royal clan of the Zhou dynasty. Cao Cao's son Cao Zhi also wrote in a eulogy for his father that they descended from the royal clan of the Zhou dynasty.(魏武作家傳，自云曹叔振鐸之後。故陳思王作武帝誄曰：「於穆武王，胄稷胤周。」此其不同者也。) Pei Songzhi's annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 14. In the early Jingchu era (237–239), Cao Rui accepted Gaotang Long's claim that the Wei emperors descended from Emperor Shun. When the Jin dynasty replaced the Cao Wei state, Cao Huan's abdication statement contained the following line: "my imperial ancestor was Emperor Shun". This resulted in greater discrepancies between sources on the Cao clan's ancestry.(及至景初，明帝從高堂隆議，謂魏為舜後，後魏為禪晉文，稱「昔我皇祖有虞」，則其異彌甚。) Pei Songzhi's annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 14.
Gaotang Long was not the only person whom Jiang Ji argued with over the ancestry of the Cao clan. Jiang Ji also debated extensively with Miao Xi (繆襲) and they wrote to each other several times throughout the debate. Their writings, however, were not recorded in history as there were too many. Although Jiang Ji ultimately could not determine the Cao clan's ancestry, he concluded that it was nonsensical and disrespectful to honour Emperor Shun as the Cao clan's ancestor when he was not, and that doing so would be equivalent to insulting Cao Cao. The mistake was not corrected at the time.(尋濟難隆，及與尚書繆襲往反，並有理據，文多不載。濟亦未能定氏族所出，但謂「魏非舜後而橫祀非族，降黜太祖，不配正天，皆為繆妄」。然于時竟莫能正。) Pei Songzhi's annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 14.
When there was a solar eclipse, Cao Fang summoned all the officials to ask them if it was a bad omen.(會有日蝕變，詔群臣問其得失， ...) Sanguozhi vol. 14. In response to the emperor's question, Jiang Ji wrote a memorial as follows:
Cao Fang denied him permission and insisted that he accept the peerage and marquisate.(固辭，不許。) Sanguozhi vol. 14. The Jin dynasty historian Sun Sheng praised Jiang Ji for showing good conscience when he declined the honour. He remarked that Jiang Ji's behaviour fit the saying: "neither was he tempted by greed nor did he feel ashamed of being righteous".(孫盛曰：蔣濟之辭邑，可謂不負心矣。語曰「不為利回，不為義疚」，蔣濟其有焉。) Sun Sheng's annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 14.
Jiang Ji died on 18 May 249 and was honoured with the Posthumous name "Marquis Jing" (景侯).(是歲薨，謚曰景侯。) Sanguozhi vol. 14.
The Shiyu (世語) recorded that during the Incident at the Gaoping Tombs, Jiang Ji wrote to Cao Shuang and promised him that Sima Yi only wanted him to give up his powers as regent. When Cao Shuang was executed after his downfall, Jiang Ji felt so upset for failing to keep his promise that he fell sick and eventually died about three months later.(世語曰：初，濟隨司馬宣王屯洛水浮橋，濟書與曹爽，言宣王旨「惟免官而已」，爽遂誅滅。濟病其言之失信，發病卒。) Shiyu annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 14.
The following night, Jiang Ji's wife dreamt about her son again. This time, he told her: "I am here to welcome the new magistrate from the imperial ancestral temple. I am able to visit you now as I still have some free time before my mission starts. The new magistrate will be leaving tomorrow at noon. As I will be very busy tomorrow, I won't be able to visit you. I hope that you will speak to Father again. There is no harm trying." He then described Sun E's physical appearance in detail.(明日暮，復夢曰：「我來迎新君，止在廟下。未發之頃，暫得來歸。新君明日日中當發，臨發多事，不復得歸，永辭於此。侯氣彊，難感悟，故自訴於母，願重啟侯，何惜不一試驗之？」遂道阿之形狀，言甚備悉。) Lieyi Zhuan annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 14. In the morning, Jiang Ji's wife told her husband: "As you said, there's nothing to worry about since it's a dream. However, this is too much of a coincidence. Besides, there is no harm trying."(天明，母重啟侯：「雖云夢不足恠，此何太適？適亦何惜不一驗之？」) Lieyi Zhuan annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 14.
Jiang Ji then sent his men to find Sun E, and they found him near the imperial ancestral temple. He looked exactly like how Jiang Ji's son described him.(濟乃遣人詣太廟下，推問孫阿，果得之，形狀證驗悉如兒言。) Lieyi Zhuan annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 14. Jiang Ji shed tears and said, "I nearly let my son down!" He then told Sun E about his wife's dreams.(濟涕泣曰：「幾負吾兒！」於是乃見孫阿，具語其事。) Lieyi Zhuan annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 14. When Sun E heard that he was going to die soon, he was not afraid at all and even felt delighted when he heard that he would become a magistrate in the netherworld. He told Jiang Ji, "If what you said is true, I am most willing to help him. However, I don't know what your son wants." Jiang Ji replied, "Maybe you can just assign him to a job that he enjoys doing." After Sun E promised Jiang Ji that he would do so, Jiang Ji presented him expensive gifts and returned to his office.(阿不懼當死，而喜得為泰山令，惟恐濟言不信也。曰：「若如節下言，阿之願也。不知賢子欲得何職？」濟曰：「隨地下樂者與之。」阿曰：「輒當奉教。」乃厚賞之，言訖遣還。) Lieyi Zhuan annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 14.
As Jiang Ji was eager to verify his wife's dreams, he deployed a line of guards from his office to the imperial ancestral temple, with a space of 10 steps between every two guards, so that they could relay any information from the temple to him in the shortest time possible. Later that morning, he heard that Sun E suffered a heart attack. By noon, he received news that Sun E was dead.(濟欲速知其驗，從領軍門至廟下，十步安一人，以傳消息。辰時傳阿心痛，巳時傳阿劇，日中傳阿亡。) Lieyi Zhuan annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 14. He wept and said, "Although I feel sad that my son died early, I am also pleased to know that he will be doing well in the netherworld." A month later, Jiang Ji's wife told her husband that she dreamt about their son again, and he told her that Sun E had reassigned him to be a secretary/scribe.(濟泣曰：「雖哀吾兒之不幸，自喜亡者有知。」後月餘，兒復來語母曰：「已得轉為錄事矣。」) Lieyi Zhuan annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 14.
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