as commissioner of education in Szechwan. In 1689, when he was serving in the capacity of an expositor in the Grand Secretariat, he was charged with bribery and cashiered (see under Kuo Hsiu and Wang Hung-hsü); but within a month he was specially pardoned and ordered to remain at his post. Thereafter he held the following offices: vice-director of the Imperial Clan Court (1700–03); a vice-president of the Board of Ceremonies (1703–12), and of the Board of Civil Office (1712–13); president of the Board of Works (1713–18); and a Grand Secretary (1718–25).
Wang Hsü-ling enjoyed the favor of both Emperors Shêng-tsu and Shih-tsung. The former honored him by twice (1705, 1707) visiting his garden, Hsiu-chia yüan 秀甲園, at Sungkiang, Kiangsu. Emperor Shih-tsung conferred various honors on him because of his services and in deference to his advanced age. After he died in office, aged eighty-four (sui), he was canonized as Wên-kung 文恭. His collected works are entitled 世恩堂集 Shih-ên t'ang chi, 32 chüan.
Wang Hsü-ling had five sons, of whom the eldest, Wang T'u-ping 王圖炳 (T. 麟照, H. 澂川, chin-shih of 1712, Hanlin compiler), served as a vice-president of the Board of Ceremonies (1730–31). A grandson of Wang Hsü-ling, named Wang Tsu-kêng 王祖庚 (d. 1765), became a chin-shih in 1727 and served as prefect of Ning-kuo-fu, Anhwei (1764–65). Three great-grandsons of Wang Hsü-ling became members of the Hanlin Academy: Wang Chia-tsêng 王嘉曾 (T. 漢儀, H. 寧叔, 史亭, chin-shih of 1766), Wang Shao-tsêng 王紹曾 (T. 衣聞, H. 蒪鄉, chin-shih of 1757, prefect of Ningpo), and Wang Hsien-tsêng 王顯曾 (T. 周謨, H. 文園, chin-shih of 1760, a censor).
Wang Hsü-ling had two younger brothers, Wang Chiu-ling 王九齡 (T. 子武, H. 薛澱, chin-shih of 1682, d. Jan. 1710), and Wang Hung-hsü [q. v.]. These two, like himself, were also members of the Hanlin Academy, and attained high offices. Wang Chiu-ling served as a vice-president of the Board of Civil Office (1704–08), and as president of the Censorate (Jan. 1708–10). His collected works, in 5 chüan, were entitled 艾納山房集 Ai-na shan-fang chi. He had a studio known as Yung-ssŭ t'ang 永思堂.
[1/273/9a; 3/12/21a; 3/58/25b; Lou-hsien chih (1786); Tz'ŭ-lin chi-lüeh (see under Shên T'ing-fang); Sungkiang fu-chih (1884) 72/42b.]
WANG Hua-chên 王化貞 (T. 肖乾, H. 乾山), d. 1632, Ming official, a native of Chu-ch'êng, Shantung, received his chin-shih degree in 1613, and started his career as a second class secretary in the Board of Revenue. In 1620 he assisted in the defense of Kuang-ning, in Liaotung, where he earned praise for his compromises with the Mongol invaders. In the following year he was raised to the post of military administrator at Kuang-ning and delighted the Court officials with impressive projects for recovering the territory lost to the Manchus. His plans for fortifying the left bank of the Liao river, for hiring 400,000 Mongol mercenaries, and for attacking the Manchus through Korea (see under Mao Wên-lung), were all bitterly opposed by Hsiung T'ing-pi [q. v.], and his undertakings uniformly went down in failure. When Kuang-ning was taken in March 1622 and the Chinese troops fled through Shanbaikuan, he was put under arrest and condemned to death. His execution was postponed by friends at Court, but was finally carried out in 1632. The only literary works attributed to him appear to be treatises on medical science, and these seem not to have been preserved.
[M.1/259/12a; K'ai-kuo fang-lüeh; Ming t'ung-chien (see bibl. under Wang Chih-ts'ai) 78/1a; Chu-ch'êng hsien-chih (1764) 32/2b, 13/3a.]
WANG Hui 王翬 (T. 石谷, H. 耕煙散人, 清暉主人 and 烏目山人), Apr. 10, 1632–1717, Nov. 15, was a native of Ch'ang-shu, Kiangsu. His great-great-grandfather, Wang Po-ch'ên 王伯臣 (T. 鑑汝, H. 劍池), was a painter of birds and flowers who was highly praised by a contemporary artist, Shên Chou 沈周 (T. 啟南, H. 石田, 1427–1509). His father also painted. Coming from a family of painters, he inherited a natural gift in the art of painting and devoted his whole life to it. As his family was not wealthy his opportunities for study and for seeing good paintings were very limited until he was about twenty when he first met the celebrated painter, Wang Chien [q. v.]. Wang Hui, having learned of the visit of Wang Chien to Ch'ang-shu, presented him, through a friend, with a fan which he had painted. Wang Chien was greatly pleased with the picture and immediately asked to see the young artist. In their interview Wang Chien arranged to accept Wang Hui as a pupil and on his return took Wang Hui with him to T'ai-ts'ang where he first taught him calligraphy and
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