Shi Yi 是儀

Shi Yi, courtesy name Ziyu, was a man of Yingling County in Beihai State. His original surname was 氏 (Shi). He first became a clerk of his county and later served in the commandery. When Kong Rong, the Chancellor of the commandery, teased him that the character 氏 was the character 民 ('people') without its top and could be changed to 是, he finally changed his surname. Records, Wu 17 §2

Later, relying on Liu Yao, he fled the disorders to Jiangdong, and when Liu Yao's army was defeated he moved to Kuaiji. When Sun Quan took over the great enterprise, he summoned Shi Yi with a courteous letter. As soon as Shi Yi arrived he was trusted as a close confidant, put in sole charge of confidential affairs and appointed Chief Commandant of Cavalry. Records, Wu 17 §2

When Lü Meng planned a surprise attack on Guan Yu, Sun Quan asked Shi Yi about it, and Shi Yi, approving of the plan, urged him to accept it. He accompanied the campaign against Guan Yu and was appointed Colonel of Loyalty and Righteousness; when he declined, Sun Quan issued an order saying, 'Though I am no Zhao Jianzi, how can you not humble yourself to be my Zhou She?' After Jing Province was pacified and the capital was set at Wuchang, he became Assistant General, was later enfeoffed as Marquis of a Chief Village and acted as Palace Attendant. Sun Quan wished to give him command of troops again, but Shi Yi firmly declined, saying he was not the material for it. Records, Wu 17 §2–3

In the Huangwu era Sun Quan sent Shi Yi to General Liu Shao (劉邵) at Wan to lure Cao Xiu in, and when Cao Xiu arrived, he was heavily defeated. Shi Yi was promoted to Lieutenant General and entered the palace to oversee the affairs of the Imperial Secretariat; outside it he managed the affairs of the various offices fairly and also handled lawsuits. He also taught writing and learning to the princes. Records, Wu 17 §3

When the imperial carriage moved east and the Crown Prince Sun Deng remained to guard Wuchang, Sun Quan had Shi Yi assist the Crown Prince. The Crown Prince respected him and consulted him first on any matter before acting. He was promoted in enfeoffment to Marquis of a Chief District, and later, returning to Jianye with the Crown Prince, he was again appointed Palace Attendant and Palace Law Enforcer and handled the affairs of the various offices and lawsuits as before. Records, Wu 17 §4

When Lü Yi, the official in charge of examining documents, falsely accused Diao Jia, former Administrator of Jiangxia, of slandering the government, Sun Quan in anger had Diao Jia thrown in prison and had everyone involved interrogated. All those implicated with him feared Lü Yi and said they had heard the slander; only Shi Yi said he had heard nothing. He was pressed for days, the wording of the edicts grew ever harsher, and the officials held their breath, but Shi Yi answered that with the knife and saw already at his neck, he would not dare to conceal anything for Diao Jia's sake, and that if it was something heard, there ought to be an account of how it came about. Because he answered truthfully and did not change his words, Sun Quan released Shi Yi, and Diao Jia too was spared. Records, Wu 17 §4–5

When Zhuge Liang, Chancellor of Shu, died, Sun Quan sent Shi Yi as envoy to Shu to reaffirm their alliance, and Shi Yi carried out his mission to Sun Quan's satisfaction. He was later appointed Supervisor of the Imperial Secretariat. When the two palaces, the Southern Palace and the palace of the King of Lu, were first established, he concurrently served as Tutor to the King of Lu while retaining his own post; uneasy that the two palaces stood too close to each other, he submitted memorials three or four times arguing that the King of Lu should be sent to guard a region of the realm and that the two palaces should be graded in rank so as to set right the order of superior and inferior. Records, Wu 17 §6–7

Shi Yi did not build up property or accept favors from others, and his house was only just big enough to live in. When a neighbor built a large mansion, Sun Quan saw it from afar and asked whose it was; when his attendants said it seemed to be Shi Yi's, Sun Quan said that Shi Yi was frugal, so it could not be his, and indeed it belonged to someone else. Hearing that Shi Yi's clothing and food were simple and that he gave relief to the poor and kept nothing stored at home, Sun Quan went to his house, tasted his meal of vegetables and rice, sighed, and increased his salary and gave him more fields and houses, but Shi Yi declined repeatedly and regarded the favor as a cause for worry. Records, Wu 17 §8

He sometimes recommended men of talent but never spoke of others' shortcomings. When Sun Quan reproached him for not speaking about affairs of state, Shi Yi answered that a subject merely keeps to his duties and fears only that he may not be equal to them. In several decades of serving the state he never committed a fault, and even when Lü Yi was denouncing generals, ministers and high officials one after another, there was nothing to denounce Shi Yi for. Sun Quan sighed, 'If everyone were like Shi Yi, what use would there be for legal codes?' Records, Wu 17 §9

When he fell ill, he left instructions that he be laid in a plain coffin and dressed in ordinary clothes of the season, keeping everything as simple as possible, and he died at the age of eighty-one. The Records does not record the year of his death. Records, Wu 17 §10

In his assessment, Chen Shou said that Shi Yi, Xu Xiang and Hu Zong were all men who took on affairs and built up the enterprise in Sun Quan's time, and that Shi Yi was pure, diligent, upright and plain. He likened them to the rafters that hold up a great house. The biography of Hu Zong also records that when Sun Quan had his capital at Jing, Hu Zong, together with Shi Yi and Xu Xiang, was in charge of confidential military and state affairs. Records, Wu 17 §42 · 12