Gu Yong (168 – November or December 243), courtesy name Yuantan, was a Chinese calligrapher, musician, and politician. He served as a minister and the second Imperial Chancellor of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Born in the late Eastern Han dynasty in the Jiangdong region, Gu Yong studied under the tutelage of Cai Yong in his early years and earned high praise from his mentor. He started his career as a county chief and served in various counties throughout Jiangdong. Around the year 200, he came to serve the warlord Sun Quan, who controlled the Jiangdong territories, and performed well in office as an acting commandery administrator. After Sun Quan became the ruler of the independent state of Eastern Wu in 222, Gu Yong steadily rose through the ranks as a minister and ultimately became Imperial Chancellor. He held office for about 19 years from 225 until his death in 243.
Background and early life Gu Yong was born in Wu County, Wu Commandery, which is present-day Suzhou, Jiangsu,(顧雍字元歎，吳郡吳人也。) Sanguozhi vol. 52. towards the end of the Eastern Han dynasty. His great-grandfather Gu Feng () was a former Administrator () of Yingchuan Commandery (潁川郡; around present-day Xuchang, Henan).(吳錄曰：雍曾祖父奉，字季鴻，潁川太守。) Wu Lu annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 52. The Gu clan, which he was from, was one of the four most influential clans in Wu Commandery and also in the Jiangdong region at the time.
Sometime in the 180s, when Cai Yong was living in Wu Commandery, Gu Yong met him and learnt calligraphy and music from him.(蔡伯喈從朔方還，嘗避怨於吳，雍從學琴書。) Sanguozhi vol. 52. While studying under Cai Yong's tutelage, Gu Yong showed that he was not only diligent and focused in his studies, but also fast-learning and easily teachable. As a result, he earned high praise from Cai Yong, who told him: "You will definitely reach the pinnacle of success. I offer you a new name – the same as mine." Gu Yong thus changed his given name to "Yong" () which was similar to Cai Yong's "Yong" ().(江表傳曰：雍從伯喈學，專一清靜，敏而易教。伯喈貴異之，謂曰：「卿必成致，今以吾名與卿。」故雍與伯喈同名，由此也。) Jiang Biao Zhuan annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 52. He also adopted "Yuantan" (), which literally means "top praise", as his courtesy name to reflect the high praise he received from his mentor.(吳錄曰：雍字元歎，言為蔡雍之所歎，因以為字焉。) Wu Lu annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 52.
The Administrator of Wu Commandery heard of Gu Yong's fame and recommended him as a talent to join the civil service. Shortly after he reached the age of adulthood, he started serving as the chief of Hefei County before he was reassigned to Lou County (婁縣; north of present-day Kunshan, Jiangsu), Qu'e County (曲阿縣; present-day Danyang, Jiangsu) and then Shangyu County (上虞縣; in present-day Shaoxing, Zhejiang).(州郡表薦，弱冠為合肥長，後轉在婁、曲阿、上虞，皆有治迹。) Sanguozhi vol. 52.
Early career under Sun Quan When the Han central government granted the warlord Sun Quan the nominal appointment of Administrator of Kuaiji Commandery (around present-day Shaoxing, Zhejiang) around 200 or 201, Sun Quan in turn appointed Gu Yong as his deputy and the acting Administrator to help him govern Kuaiji Commandery because he was based in Wu Commandery at the time. During his tenure, Gu Yong pacified and integrated rebels and minorities under his jurisdiction and maintained peace. He earned much respect from his subordinates and the people alike for his good performance.(孫權領會稽太守，不之郡，以雍為丞，行太守事，討除寇賊，郡界寧靜，吏民歸服。) Sanguozhi vol. 52. After holding office for many years, he was reassigned to be a Left Major () under Sun Quan.(數年，入為左司馬。) Sanguozhi vol. 52.
In 222, after Sun Quan became the King of Wu (), he promoted Gu Yong to the positions of Minister of Imperial Ancestral Ceremonies () and Prefect of the Masters of Writing () in his kingdom. He also enfeoffed Gu Yong as the Marquis of Yangsui District (). As Gu Yong went straight back to his office after his conferment ceremony, his family did not know that he had been made a marquis so they were very surprised when they found out later.(權為吳王，累遷大理奉常，領尚書令，封陽遂鄉侯，拜侯還寺，而家人不知，後聞乃驚。) Sanguozhi vol. 52.
In 225, Gu Yong fetched his mother from his hometown in Wu County (吳縣; present-day Suzhou, Jiangsu) to live with him in Wuchang (武昌; present-day Ezhou, Hubei), the imperial capital of Eastern Wu. When she arrived, Sun Quan greeted and welcomed her in person, and later paid his respects to her in his imperial court in the presence of all his subjects. Sun Quan's heir apparent, Sun Deng, also greeted her.(黃武四年，迎母於吳。旣至，權臨賀之，親拜其母於庭，公卿大臣畢會，後太子又往慶焉。) Sanguozhi vol. 52. In the same year, Gu Yong was reassigned to serve as Minister of Ceremonies () and promoted from a district marquis to a county marquis under the title "Marquis of Liling" (). Later that year, he succeeded Sun Shao as the Imperial Chancellor of Eastern Wu and took charge of the imperial secretariat.(是歲，改為太常，進封醴陵侯，代孫邵為丞相，平尚書事。) Sanguozhi vol. 52. Yi Zhongtian commented that the appointment of Gu Yong and later Lu Xun as Chancellor was the compromise between the local Jiangdong nobility and the ruling clique of Eastern Wu (mostly came from other regions), as both Gu and Lu descended from notable and powerful Jiangdong clans. Sun Quan was eager to grant more power shares for the Jiangdong nobility as long as it enabled the Sun royal family to maintain the overall control.
As Imperial Chancellor of Eastern Wu While holding office as Imperial Chancellor, Gu Yong managed the administration well. He assigned his subordinates to their respective appointments in a way which not only generally suited their preferences, but also allowed them to put their talents to good use. He also often went on inspection tours to assess local conditions and see if policy changes could be made to improve the people's lives. When he had new ideas, he secretly proposed them to Sun Quan. If his ideas were approved and implemented, he gave the credit to Sun Quan instead of claiming it for himself. If his ideas were rejected, he kept quiet and did not reveal anything. As a result, Sun Quan trusted and regarded him highly.(其所選用文武將吏各隨能所任，心無適莫。時訪逮民閒，及政職所宜，輒密以聞。若見納用，則歸之於上，不用，終不宣泄。權以此重之。) Sanguozhi vol. 52.
A reticent person Although Gu Yong always maintained a polite and respectful tone when he spoke up on issues in the imperial court, he was also known for standing by his principles and holding his ground when he had to.(然於公朝有所陳及，辭色雖順而所執者正。) Sanguozhi vol. 52. On one occasion, when Sun Quan sought feedback from his subjects on policy matters, Zhang Zhao used the opportunity to ask for a review of the laws. He presented the findings he collected over a period of time, and pointed out that the laws were too strict and the penalties for crimes were too harsh.(權嘗咨問得失，張昭因陳聽采聞，頗以法令太稠，刑罰微重，宜有所蠲損。) Sanguozhi vol. 52. Sun Quan did not respond to Zhang Zhao and instead turned to Gu Yong and asked him: "Sir, what do you think?" Gu Yong replied: "My observations coincide with what Zhang Zhao just described." Sun Quan thus approved Zhang Zhao's request for a review of the laws.(權默然，顧問雍曰：「君以為何如？」雍對曰：「臣之所聞，亦如昭所陳。」於是權乃議獄輕刑。) Sanguozhi vol. 52.
Sun Quan often sent his palace secretaries to consult Gu Yong on policy matters. If Gu Yong approved, he had food and drinks prepared for the secretaries while they discussed and refined their ideas with him. If he disapproved, he appeared solemn and remained silent, and had no food and drinks prepared for them. The secretaries then scrapped their ideas and went back.(江表傳曰：灌常令中書郎詣雍，有所咨訪。若合雍意，事可施行，即與相反覆，究而論之，為設酒食。如不合意，雍即正色改容，默然不言，無所施設，即退告。) Jiang Biao Zhuan annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 52. Sun Quan once said: "If Lord Gu is happy, that means he approves your idea. If he doesn't say anything, that means he thinks your idea can be improved. When that happens, I will think through again carefully." This quote showed that Sun Quan had much faith and respect for Gu Yong.(權曰：「顧公歡恱，是事合宜也；其不言者，是事未平也，孤當重思之。」其見敬信如此。) Jiang Biao Zhuan annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 52.
Response to suggestions to launch border raids Around the time, many Wu military officers in charge of defending the border along the southern banks of the Yangtze River wanted to gain credit for making contributions in battle, so they often wrote to the imperial court to suggest launching small raids on Wu's rival state Wei in the north.(江邊諸將，各欲立功自效，多陳便宜，有所掩襲。) Jiang Biao Zhuan annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 52.
When Sun Quan sought Gu Yong's opinion on this, the latter said: "I heard that in warfare, one should refrain from trying to make petty gains. When these officers make such suggestions, they actually just want to claim some credit and glory for themselves, rather than for the greater benefit of our State. Your Majesty should ban them from making such suggestions. If a suggestion doesn't do much harm to the enemy and isn't sufficient for us to showcase our military prowess, then it shouldn't be taken into consideration." Sun Quan heeded his advice.(權以訪雍，雍曰：「臣聞兵法戒於小利，此等所陳，欲邀功名而為其身，非為國也，陛下宜禁制。苟不足以曜威損敵，所不宜聽也。」權從之。) Jiang Biao Zhuan annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 52.
Throughout his tenure as Imperial Chancellor, Gu Yong never shared his opinions on policy issues except when he spoke to Sun Quan in person.(軍國得失，行事可不，自非面見，口未嘗言之。) Jiang Biao Zhuan annotation in Sanguozhi vol. 52.
Lü Yi scandal Around the 230s, Sun Quan appointed Lü Yi, whom he highly trusted, as the supervisor of the bureau in charge of auditing and reviewing the work of all officials in both the central and regional governments. Along with his colleague Qin Bo (), Lü Yi freely abused his powers by picking on trivialities and falsely accusing numerous officials of committing serious offences. As a result, some officials were wrongfully arrested, imprisoned and tortured during interrogation.(乆之，呂壹、秦博為中書，典校諸官府及州郡文書。壹等因此漸作威福，遂造作榷酤障管之利，舉罪糾姧，纖介必聞，重以深案醜誣，毀短大臣，排陷無辜，雍等皆見舉白，用被譴讓。) Sanguozhi vol. 52.
Gu Yong was one of Lü Yi's targets. The latter initially prepared to make a case against him for incompetence and ask Sun Quan to remove him from office. However, after an official Xie Gong () pointed out that Pan Jun, the Minister of Ceremonies, would most likely become the next Imperial Chancellor if Gu Yong were to be removed from office, Lü Yi immediately dropped the case against Gu Yong because he knew that Pan Jun resented him and would take action against him if he became Imperial Chancellor.(時校事呂壹操弄威柄，奏桉丞相顧雍、左將軍朱據等，皆見禁止。黃門侍郎謝厷語次問壹：「顧公事何如？」壹荅：「不能佳。」厷又問：「若此公免退，誰當代之？」壹未荅厷，厷曰：「得無潘太常得之乎？」壹良乆曰：「君語近之也。」厷謂曰：「潘太常常切齒於君，但道遠無因耳。今日代顧公，恐明日便擊君矣。」壹大懼，遂解散雍事。) Sanguozhi vol. 61.
Lü Yi's abuses of power finally came to an end in 238 when Sun Quan learnt the truth about him and understood the gravity of the situation. After removing Lü Yi from office, Sun Quan had him imprisoned under the watch of the Ministry of Justice, and then ordered Gu Yong to conduct an investigation. While interrogating Lü Yi, Gu Yong maintained his composure and performed his job professionally. Before Lü Yi was escorted out, Gu Yong asked him, "Do you have anything else to say?" Lü Yi kowtowed and remained silent. When another official Huai Xu () started scolding Lü Yi, Gu Yong sternly rebuked Huai Xu: "As government officials, we should follow the laws. Why must you do this?"(後壹姦罪發露，收繫廷尉。雍往斷獄，壹以囚見，雍和顏色，問其辭狀，臨出，又謂壹曰：「君意得無欲有所道？」壹叩頭無言。時尚書郎懷叙面詈辱壹，雍責叙曰：「官有正法，何至於此！」) Sanguozhi vol. 52.